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THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 


^ 


The 
Book  of  Hallowe'en 


By 

RUTH  EDNA  KELLEY,  A.  M. 
Lynn  Public  Library 


ILLUSTRATED 


BOSTON 
LOTHROP,  LEE  &  SHEPARD  CO. 


68487 


Published,  August,  19 19  ^ 


Copyright,  1919, 
By  Lothrop,  Lee  &  Shepard  Co. 


J//  Rights  Reserved 


The  Book  of  Hallowe'en 


;:;;:!'ttot3«?(j(«)-.t>r,c0r  :  . .. 
•  •  Berwick:  &  ^Mth  co*  .'  *•. 

Norwood,  Mass. 
U.S.A. 


t\-.  :' 


STACK  ANNEX 


:^ 


7<7  wy  Mother  and  the  memory  of^ny  Father 

who  inspired  and  encouraged  me 

in  the  writing  of  this 

book 


•I 

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l!fl 
■ill 

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S  :  ■  ! 


PREFACE 

This  book  is  intended  to  give  the  reader 
an  account  of  the  origin  and  history  of 
Hallowe'en,  how  it  absorbed  some  customs 
belonging  to  other  days  in  the  year, — such  as 
May  Day,  Midsummer,  and  Christmas.  The 
context  is  illustrated  by  selections  from  an- 
cient and  modern  poetry  and  prose,  related  to 
Hallowe'en  ideas. 

Those  who  wish  suggestions  for  readings, 
recitations,  plays,  and  parties,  will  find  the 
Usts  in  the  appendix  useful,  in  addition  to  the 
books  on  entertainments  and  games  to  be 
found  in  any  public  library. 

Special  acknowledgment  is  made  to  Messrs. 
E.  P.  Button  &  Company  for  permission  to 
use  the  poem  entitled  "  Hallowe'en "  from 
''  The  Spires  of  Oxford  and  Other  Poems,"  by 
W.  M.  Letts ;  to  Messrs.  Longmans,  Green  & 
Company  for  the  poem  "  Pomona,"  by  Wil- 
liam Morris ;  and  to  the  Editors  of  The  Inde- 
pendent for  the  use  of  five  poems. 

.    RUTH  EDNA   KELLEY. 
Lynn,  1919. 


vu 


CONTENTS 

CHAT.  PAGE 

I.    SuN-WoRSHip.    The  Sources  of  Hal- 
lowe'en   I 

II.    The  Celts  :    Their  Religion  and  Fes- 
tivals       5 

III.  Samhain i6 

IV.  Pomona 23 

V.    The    Coming    of    Christianity,     All 

Saints'.    All  Souls'       ...      27 

VI.    Origin  and  Character  of  Hallowe'en 

Omens 33 

"VII.    Hallowe'en  Beliefs  and  Customs  in 

Ireland "35 

VIII.     Hallowe'en  Beliefs  and  Customs  in 

Scotland  and  the  Hebrides  .        .       59 

IX.     Hallowe'en   Beliefs  and  Customs  in 

England  and  Man  ....      82 

X.     Hallowe'en   Beliefs  and  Customs  in 

Wales loi 

XL     Hallowe'en  Beliefs  and  Customs  in 

Brittany  and  France      .        .        .     107 

XII.    The  Teutonic  Religion.    Witches      .     119 

XIII.  Walpurgis  Night 136 

XIV.  More  Hallowtide  Beliefs  and  Cus- 

toms         142 

ix 


X  CONTENTS 

CHAP.  ,AO, 

XV.    Hallowe'en  IN  America       .        ,        .     149 

"  Four  Poems  " 172 

Magazine  References  to  Hallowe'en 

Entertainments  .  .  .  .179 
Supplementary    List     of     Readings, 

Recitations,  AND  Plays  .  .  .182 
Index  to  Quotations  .  ,  ,  .184 
Index i38 


ILLUSTRATIONS 

Hallowe'en  Festivities Frontispiece 

FACING  PAGE 

In  Hallowe'en  Time 34 

The  Witch  of  the  Walnut-Tree         •        ...  100 

The  Witches'  Dance  {Valpurgisnachi)     ,        ,        ,  138 

Fortune-Telling i^ 

Hallowe'en  Tables,  I 156 

Hallowe'en  Tables,  II 158 

No  Hallowe'en  without  a  Jack -o' -Lantern         •        ,178 


The  Book  of  Hallowe'en 


CHAPTER  I 


SUN-WOESHIP.     THE  SOUECES  OF 
HALLOWE'EN 

If  we  could  ask  one  of  the  old-world 
pagans  whom  he  revered  as  his  greatest 
gods,  he  would  be  sure  to  name  among  them 
the  sun-god ;  calling  him  Apollo  if  he  were  a 
Greek ;  if  an  Egyptian,  Horus  or  Osiris ;  if 
of  Norway,  Sol ;  if  of  Peru,  Bochica.  As  the 
sun  is  the  center  of  the  physical  universe,  so 
all  primitive  peoples  made  it  the  hub  about 
which  their  religion  revolved,  nearly  always 
believing  it  a  living  person  to  whom  they 
could  say  prayers  and  offer  sacrifices,  who 
directed  their  lives  and  destinies,  and  could 
even   snatch  men  from  earthly  existence  to 


2    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

dwell  for  a  time  with  him,  as  it  draws  the 
water  from  lakes  and  seas. 

In  believing  this  they  followed  an  instinct 
of  all  early  peoples,  a  desire  to  make  persons 
of  the  great  powers  of  nature,  such  as  the 
world  of  growing  things,  mountains  and 
water,  the  sun,  moon,  and  stars  ;  and  a  wish 
for  these  gods  they  had  made  to  take  an  in- 
terest in  and  be  part  of  their  daily  life.  The 
next  step  was  making  stories  about  them  to 
account  for  what  was  seen  ;  so  arose  myths 
and  legends. 

The  sun  has  always  marked  out  work-time 
and  rest,  divided  the  year  into  winter  idle- 
ness, seed-time,  growth,  and  harvest ;  it  has 
always  been  responsible  for  all  the  beauty  and 
goodness  of  the  earth  ;  it  is  itself  splendid  to 
look  upon.  It  goes  away  and  stays  longer 
and  longer,  leaving  the  land  in  cold  and 
gloom  ;  it  returns  bringing  the  long  fair  days 
and  resurrection  of  spring.  A  Japanese 
legend  tells  how  the  hidden  sun  was  lured 
out  by  an  image  made  of  a  copper  plate  with 
saplings  radiating  from  it  like  sunbeams,  and 


SUN-WORSHIP  3 

a  fire  kindled,  dancing,  and  prayers ;  and 
round  the  earth  in  North  America  the  Chero- 
kees  believed  they  brought  the  sun  back  upon 
its  northward  path  by  the  same  means  of 
rousing  its  curiosity,  so  that  it  would  come 
out  to  see  its  counterpart  and  find  out  what 
was  going  on. 

All  the  more  important  church  festivals  are 
survivals  of  old  rites  to  the  sun.  "  How 
many  times  the  Church  has  decanted  the  new 
wine  of  Christianity  into  the  old  bottles  of 
heathendom."  Yule-tide,  the  pagan  Christ- 
mas, celebrated  the  sun's  turning  north,  and 
the  old  midsummer  holiday  is  still  kept  in 
Ireland  and  on  the  Continent  as  St.  John's 
Day  by  the  lighting  of  bonfires  and  a  dance 
about  them  from  east  to  west  as  the  sun  ap- 
pears to  move.  The  pagan  Hallowe'en  at  the 
end  of  summer  was  a  time  of  grieTfor  the  de- 
cline of  the  sun's  glory,  as  well  as  a  harvest 
festival  of  thanksgiving  to  him  for  having 
ripened  the  grain  and  fruit,  as  we  formerly 
had  husking-bees  when  the  ears  had  been 
garnered,  and  now  keep  our  own  Thanksgiv- 


4    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

ing  by  eating  of  our  winter  store  in  praise  of 
God  who  gives  us  our  increase. 

Pomona,  the  Koman  goddess  of  fruit,  lends 
us  the  harvest  element  of  Hallowe'en ;  the 
Celtic  day  of  "summer's  end"  was  a  time 
when  spirits,  mostly  evil,  were  abroad;  the 
gods  whom  Christ  dethroned  joined  the  ill- 
omened  throng ;  the  Church  festivals  of  All 
Saints'  and  All  Souls*  coming  at  the  same 
time  of  year — the  first  of  November — con- 
tributed the  idea  of  the  return  of  the  dead ; 
and  the  Teutonic  May  Eve  assemblage  of 
witches  brought  its  hags  and  their  attend- 
ant beasts  to  help  celebrate  the  night  of 
October  31st. 


CHAPTER  II 

THE  CELTS  :  THEIE  RELIGION  AJSD 
FESTIVALS 

The  first  reference  to  Great  Britain  in  Eu- 
ropean annals  of  which  we  know  was  the 
statement  in  the  fifth  century  b.  c.  of  the 
Greek  historian  Herodotus,  that  Phoenician 
sailors  went  to  the  British  Isles  for  tin.  He 
called  them  the  "  Tin  Islands."  The  people 
with  whom  these  sailors  traded  must  have 
been  Celts,  for  they  were  the  first  inhabitants 
of  Britain  who  worked  in  metal  instead  of 
stone. 

The  Druids  were  priests  of  the  Celts  cen- 
turies before  Christ  came.  There  is  a  tradi- 
tion in  Ireland  that  they  first  arrived  there 
in  270  B.  c,  seven  hundred  years  before  St. 
Patrick.  The  account  of  them  written  by 
Julius  Caesar  half  a  century  before  Christ 
speaks  mainly  of  the  Celts  of  Gaul,  dividing 
them   into  two  ruling  classes  who  kept  the 


6    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

people  almost  in  a  state  of  slavery ;  the 
knights,  who  waged  war,  and  the  Druids  who 
had  charge  of  worship  and  sacrifices,  and  were 
in  addition  physicians,  historians,  teachers, 
scientists,  and  judges. 

CsBsar  says  that  this  cult  originated  in 
Britain,  and  was  transferred  to  Gaul.  Gaul 
and  Britain  had  one  religion  and  one  lan- 
guage, and  might  even  have  one  king,  so  that 
what  Caesar  wrote  of  Gallic  Druids  must  have 
been  true  of  British. 

The  Celts  worshipped  spirits  of  forest  and 
stream,  and  feared  the  powers  of  evil,  as  did 
the  Greeks  and  all  other  early  races.  Very 
much  of  their  primitive  belief  has  been  kept, 
so  that  to  Scotch,  Irish,  and  Welsh  peasantry 
brooks,  hills,  dales,  and  rocks  abound  in  tiny 
supernatural  beings,  who  may  work  them 
good  or  evil,  lead  them  astray  by  flickering 
lights,  or  charm  them  into  seven  years'  servi- 
tude unless  they  are  bribed  to  show  favor. 

The  name  "  Druid  "  is  derived  from  the 
Celtic  word  "  druidh,"  meaning  "  sage,"  con- 
nected with  the  Greek  word  for  oak,  "  drus," 


THE  CELTS  f 

"  The  rapid  oak-tree  — 
Before  him  heaven  and  earth  quake : 
Stout  door-keeper  against  the  foe. 
In  every  laud  his  name  is  mine." 

Taliesin  :  Battle  of  the  Trees. 

for  the  oak  was  held  sacred  by  them  as  a 
symbol  of  the  omnipotent  god,  upon  whom 
they  depended  for  life  like  the  mistletoe  grow- 
ing upon  it.  Their  ceremonies  were  held  in 
oak-groves. 

Later  from  their  name  a  word  meaning 
"  magician  "  was  formed,  showing  that  these 
priests  had  gained  the  reputation  of  being 
dealers  in  magic. 

"  The  Druid  followed  him  and  suddenly,  as 

we  are  told,  struck  him  with  a  druidic  wand,  or 

according  to  one  version,  flung  at  him  a  tuft  of 

grass  over  which  he  had  pronounced  a  druidical 

incantation." 

O'CUBEY ;  Ancient  Irish. 

They  dealt  in  symbols,  common  objects  to 
which   was   given    by   the    interposition   of 


'S     THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

spirits,  meaning  to  signify  certain  facts,  and 
power  to  produce  certain  effects.  Since  they 
were  tree-worshippers,  trees  and  plants  were 
thought  to  have  peculiar  powers. 

Csesar  provides  them  with  a  galaxy  of  Ro- 
man divinities.  Mercury,  Mars,  Jupiter,  and 
Minerva,  who  of  course  were  worshipped 
under  their  native  names.  Their  chief  god 
was  Baal,  of  whom  they  believed  the  sun  the 
visible  emblem.  They  represented  him  by 
lowlier  tokens,  such  as  circles  and  wheels. 
The  trefoil,  changed  into  a  figure  composed 
of  three  winged  feet  radiating  from  a  center, 
represented  the  swiftness  of  the  sun's  journey. 
The  cross  too  was  a  symbol  of  the  sun,  being 
the  appearance  of  its  light  shintng  upon  dew 
or  stream,  making  to  the  half-closed  eye 
little  bright  crosses.  One  form  of  the  cross 
was  the  swastika. 

To  Baal  they  made  sacrifices  of  criminals 
or  prisoners  of  war,  often  burning  them  alive 
in  wicker  images.  Thes*^  bonfires  lighted  on 
the  hills  were  meant  to  urge  the  god  to  pro- 
tect  and   blpfls   the   crops  and  herds.     From 


THE  CELTS  9^ 

the  appearance  of  the  victims  sacrificed  in 
them,  omens  were  taken  that  foretold  the  fu- 
ture. The  gods  and  other  supernatural 
powers  in  answer  to  prayer  were  thought  to 
signify  their  will  by  omens,  and  also  by  the 
following  methods :  the  ordeal,  in  which  the 
innocence  or  guilt  of  a  person  was  shown  by 
the  way  the  god  permitted  him  to  endure  fire 
or  other  torture ;  exorcism,  the  driving  out  of 
demons  by  saying  mysterious  words  or  names 
over  them.  Becoming  skilled  in  interpreting 
the  will  of  the  gods,  the  Druids  came  to  be 
known  as  prophets. 

"  O  Deirdre,  terrible  child, 
For  thee,  red  star  of  our  ruin, 
Great  weeping  shall  be  in  Eri — 
Woe,  woe,  and  a  breach  in  UUa. 

***** 

**  Thy  feet  shall  trample  the  mighty 
Yet  stumble  on  heads  thou  lovest." 

ToDHUNTEE  :  Dimid  song  of  Cathvah, 

They  kept  their  lore  for  the  most  part  a 
secret,  forbidding  it  to  be  written,  passing  it 


lo    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

down  by  word  of  mouth.  They  taught  the 
immortality  of  the  soul,  that  it  passed  from 
one  body  to  another  at  death. 

"  If,  as  those  Druids  taught,  which  kept 
the  British  rites, 
And  dwelt  in  darksome  groves,  there 

counselling  with  sprites, 
When  these  our  souls  by  death  our 

bodies  do  forsake 
They  instantly  again  do  other  bodies 

take " 

Deayton  :  FolydUmn. 

They  believed  that  on  the  last  night  of  the  old 
year  (October  Slst)  the  lord  of  death  gathered 
together  the  souls  of  all  those  who  had  died 
in  the  passing  year  and  had  been  condemned 
to  live  in  the  bodies  of  animals,  to  decree 
what  forms  they  should  inhabit  for  the  next 
twelve  months.  He  could  be  coaxed  to  give 
lighter  sentences  by  gifts  and  prayers. 

The  badge  of  the  initiated  Druid  was  a 
glass  ball  reported  to  be  made  in  summer  of 
the  spittle  of  snakes,  and  caught  by  the  priests 
as  the  snakes  tossed  it  into  the  air. 


THE  CELTS  ii 

"  And  the  potent  adder-stone 
Gender'd  'fore  the  autumnal  moon 
When  in  undulating  twine 
The  foaming  snakes  prolific  join." 

Mason  :  Garactacus. 

It  was  real  glass,  blown  by  the  Druids  them- 
selves. It  was  supposed  to  aid  the  wearer  in 
winning  lawsuits  and  securing  the  favor  of 
kings. 

An  animal  sacred  to  the  Druids  was  the  cat. 

"  A  slender  black  cat  reclining  on  a  chain 
of  old  silver  "  guarded  treasure  in  the  old 
days.  For  a  long  time  cats  were  dreaded  by 
the  people  because  they  thought  human  be- 
ings had  been  changed  to  that  form  by  evil 
means. 

The  chief  festivals  of  the  Druids  fell  on  four 
days,  celebrating  phases  of  the  sun's  career. 
Fires  of  sacrifice  were  lighted  especially  at 
spring  and  midsummer  holidays,  by  excep- 
tion on  November  1st. 

May  Day  and  November  Day  were  the 
more  important,  the  beginning  and  end  of 
summer,  yet  neither  equinoxes  nor  solstices. 


12    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

The  time  was  divided  then  not  according  to 
sowing  and  reaping,  but  by  the  older  method 
of  reckonino^  from  when  the  herds  were  turned 
out  to  pasture  in  the  spring  and  brought  into 
the  fold  again  at  the  approach  of  winter — by 
a  pastoral  rather  than  an  agricultural  people. 
On  the  night  before  Beltaine  ("  Baal-fire  "), 
the  first  of  Ma;^,  fires  were  burned  to  Baal  to 
celebrate  the  return  of  the  sun  bringing 
summer.  Before  sunrise  the  houses  were 
decked  with  garlands  to  gladden  the  sun 
when  he  appeared  ;  a  rite  which  has  survived 
in  "  going  maying.'*  The  May-Day  fires  were 
used  for  purification.  Cattle  were  singed  by 
being  led  near  the  flahies,  and  sometimes  bled 
that  their  blood  might  be  offered  as  a  sacrifice 
for  a  prosperous  season. 

"  When  lo !  a  flame, 
A  wavy  flame  of  ruddy  light 
Leaped  up,  the  farmyard  fence  above. 
And  while  his  children's  shout  rang  high, 
His  cows  the  farmer  slowly  drove 
Across  the  blaze, — he  knew  not  wh}\" 

KiCKHABl :  St.  John's  Eve. 


THE  CELTS  13 

A  cake  was  baked  iu  the  fire  with  one  piece 
blacked  with  charcoal.  Whoever  got  the 
black  piece  was  thereby  marked  for  sacrifice 
to  Baal,  so  that,  as  the  ship  proceeded  in 
safety  after  Jonah  was  cast  overboard,  the 
affairs  of  the  group  about  the  May-Eve  fire 
might  prosper  when  it  was  purged  of  the 
one  whom  Baal  designated  by  lot.  Later 
only  the  symbol  of  offering  was  used,  the 
victim  being  forced  to  leap  thrice  over  the 
flames. 

In  history  it  was  the  day  of  the  coming  of 
good.  Partholon,  the  discoverer  and  pro- 
moter of  Ireland,  came  thither  from  the  other 
world  to  stay  three  hundred  years.  The  gods 
themselves,  the  deliverers  of  Ireland,  first 
arrived  there  "  through  the  air "  on  May 
Day. 

June  21st,  the  day  of  the  summer  solstice, 
the  height  of  the  sun's  power,  was  marked  by 
midnight  fires  of  joy  and  by  dances.  These 
were  believed  to  strengthen  the  sun's  heat. 
A  blazing  wheel  to  represent  the  sun  was 
rolled  down  hill. 


14    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  A  happy  thought. 
Give  me  this  cart-wheel. 
I'll  have  it  tied  with  ropes  and  smeared 

with  pitch, 
And  when  it's  lighted,  I  will  roll  it  down 
The  steepest  hillside." 

Hauptmann:  Sunken  B^. 

(Lewisohn  trans.') 

Spirits  were  believed  to  be  abroad,  and  torches 
were  carried  about  the  fields  to  protect  them 
from  invasion.  Charms  were  tried  on  that 
night  with  seeds  of  fern  and  hemp,  and 
dreams  were  believed  to  be  prophetic. 

Lugh,  in  old  Highland  speech  "  the  summer 


sun  " 


"  The  hour  may  hither  drift 
When  at  the  last,  amid  the  o'erwearied  Shee  — 
Weary  of  long  delight  and  deathless  joys  — 
One  you  shall  love  may  fade  before  your  eyes, 
Before  your  eyes  may  fade,  and  be  as  mist 
Caught  in  the  sunny  hollow  of  Lu's  hand, 
Lord  of  the  Day." 

Sharp  :  Immortal  Hour. 

had  for  father  one  of  the  gods  and  for  mother 
the  daughter  of  a  chief  of  the  enemy.     Hence 


A  Witches'-Caldron  Table. 


A  Black-Cat  Table. 
Hallowe'en  Tables,  II. 


THE  CELTS  15 

he  possessed  some  good  and  some  evil  tend- 
encies. He  may  be  the  Celtic  Mercury,  for 
they  were  alike  skilled  in  magic  and  alchemy, 
in  deception,  successful  in  combats  with 
demons,  the  bringers  of  new  strength  and 
cleansing  to  the  nation.  He  said  farewell  to 
power  on  the  first  of  August,  and  his  foster- 
mother  had  died  on  that  day,  so  then  it  was 
he  set  his  feast-day.  The  occasion  was  called 
*'  Lugnasad,"  "  the  bridal  of  Lugh  "  and  the 
earth,  whence  the  harvest  should  spring.  It 
was  celebrated  by  the  offering  of  the  first 
fruits  of  harvest,  and  by  races  and  athletic 
sports.  In  Meath,  Ireland,  this  continued 
down  into  the  nineteenth  century,  with  danc- 
ing and  horse-racing  the  first  week  of  August. 


CHAPTER  III 

SAMHATN 

On  November  first  was  Samhain  ("sum- 
mer's end  "). 

"  Take  my  tidings : 
Stags  contend ; 
Snows  descend  — 
Summer's  end ! 

**  A  chill  wind  raging, 

The  sun  low  keeping, 
Swift  to  set 
O'er  seas  high  sweeping. 

**  Dull  red  the  fern ; 

Shapes  are  shadows ; 
Wild  geese  mourn 
O'er  misty  meadows. 

**  Keen  cold  limes  each  weaker  wing, 
Icy  times  — 
Such  I  sing ! 
Take  my  tidings." 

Geaves  :  First  Winter  8ong. 
'       .  16 


SAMHAIN  17 

Then  the  flocks  were  driven  in,  and  men 
first  had  leisure  after  harvest  toil.  Fires 
were  built  as  a  thanksgiving  to  Baal  for 
harvest.  The  old  fire  on  the  altar  was 
quenched  before  the  night  of  October  31st, 
and  the  new  one  made,  as  were  all  sacred 
fires,  by  friction.  It  was  called  "  forced- 
fire."  A  wheel  and  a  spindle  were  used : 
the  wheel,  the  sun  symbol,  was  turned  from 
east  to  west,  sunwise.  The  sparks  were 
caught  in  tow,  blazed  upon  the  altar,  and 
were  passed  on  to  light  the  hilltop  fires. 
The  new  fire  was  given  next  morning,  New 
Year's  Day,  by  the  priests  to  the  people  to 
light  their  hearths,  where  all  fires  had  been 
extinguished.  The  blessed  fire  was  thought 
to  protect  the  year  through  the  home  it 
warmed.  In  Ireland  the  altar  was  Tlactga, 
on  the  hill  of  Ward  in  Meath,  where  sacrifices, 
especially  black  sheep,  were  burnt  in  the  new 
fire.  From  the  death  struggles  and  look  of 
the  creatures  omens  for  the  future  year  were 
taken. 
The  year  was  over,  and  the  sun's  life  of  a 


1 8    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

year  was  done.  The  Celts  thought  that  at 
this  time  the  sun  fell  a  victim  for  six  months 
to  the  powers  of  winter  darkness.  In  Egyp- 
tian mythology  one  of  the  sun-gods,  Qsiris, 
was  slain  ay  a  banquet  by  his  brother  Sitou, 
the  god  of /darkness.  On  the  anniversary  of 
the  murder,  the  first/day  of  wintef,  nb  Egyp- 
tian would  begin  any  new  business  f0r  fear  of 
bad  l^ck,  since  the  spirit  of  evil  was  then  in 
powet". 

From  the  idea  that  the  sun  suffered  from 
his  enemies  on  this  day  grew  the  association 
of  Samhain  with  death. 

"  The  melancholy  days  are  come,  the  saddest  of 
the  year, 

Of  wailing  winds,  and  naked  woods,  and  mead- 
ows brown  and  sere. 

Heaped  in  the  hollows  of  the  grove,  the 
wither'd  leaves  lie  dead ; 

They  rustle  to  the  eddying  gust,  and  to  the 
rabbit's  tread. 

The  robin  and  the  wren  are  flown,  and  from 
the  shrub  the  jay 

And  from  the  wood-top  calls  the  crow,  through 
all  the  gloomy  day. 


SAMHAIN  19 

"  The  wind-flower  and  the  violet,  they  perished 
long  ago, 

And  the  wild  rose  and  the  orchis  died  amid 
the  summer  glow : 

Bat  on  the  hill  the  golden-rod,  and  the  aster  in 
the  wood, 

And  the  yellow  sun-flower  by  the  brook  in  au- 
tumn beauty  stood, 

Till  fell  the  frost  from  the  cold  clear  heaven, 
as  falls  the  plague  on  men, 

And  the   brightness  of  their  smile  was  gone 
from  upland,  glade,  and  glen." 

Beyant  :  Death  of  (he  Flowers. 

In  the  same  state  as  those  who  are  dead, 
are  those  who  have  never  lived,  dwelling  right 
in  the  world,  but  invisible  to  most  mortals  at 
most  times.  Seers  could  see  them  at  any  time, 
and  if  very  many  were  abroad  at  once  others 
might  get  a  chance  to  watch  them  too. 

"  There  is  a  world  in  which  we  dwell, 
And  yet  a  world  invisible. 

And  do  not  think  that  naught  can  be 
Save  only  what  with  eyes  ye  see  ; 
I  tell  ye  that,  this  very  hour, 
Had  but  your  sight  a  spirit's  power. 
Ye  would  be  looking,  eye  to  eye. 
At  a  terrific  company." 

CoxE  :  Hallowe'eTi, 


20    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

These  supernatural  spirits  ruled  the  dead. 
There  were  two  classes :  the  Tuatha  De 
Danann,  "  the  people  of  the  goddess  Danu," 
gods  of  light  and  life ;  and  spirits  of  darkness 
and  evil.  The  Tuatha  had  their  chief  seat  on 
the  Isle  of  Man,  in  the  middle  of  the  Irish 
Sea,  and  brought  under  their  power  the 
islands  about  them.  On  a  Midsummer  Day 
they  vanquished  the  Fir  Bolgs  and  gained 
most  of  Ireland,  by  the  battle  of  Moytura. 

A  long  time  afterwards — perhaps  1000  b.  c. 
— the  Fomor,  sea-demons,  after  destroying 
nearly  all  their  enemies  by  plagues,  exacted 
from  those  remaining,  as  tribute,  "  a  third 
part  of  their  corn,  a  third  part  of  their  milk, 
and  a  third  part  of  their  children."  This  tax 
was  paid  on  Samhain.  It  was  on  the  week 
before  Samhain  that  the  Fomor  landed  upon 
Ireland.  On  the  eve  of  Samhain  the  gods 
met  them  in  the  second  battle  of  Moytura,  and 
they  were  driven  back  into  the  ocean. 

As  Tigernmas,  a  mythical  king  of  Ireland, 
was  sacrificing  "  the  firstlings  of  every  issue, 
and  the  scions  of  every  clan  "  to  Crom  Croich, 


SAMHAIN  21 

the  king  idol,  and  lay  prostrate  before  the 
image,  he  and  three-fourths  of  his  men  mys- 
teriously disappeared. 

"  Then  came 
Tigernmas,  the  prince  of  Tara  yonder 
On  Hallowe'en  with  many  hosts. 
A  cause  of  grief  to  them  was  the  deed. 
Dead  were  the  men 

Of  Bamba's  host,  without  happy  strength 
Around  Tigernmas,  the  destructive  man  of 

the  north, 
From  the  worship  of  Crom  Cruaich.     'T  was 

no  luck  for  them. 
For  I  have  learnt, 

Except  one-fourth  of  the  keen  Gaels, 
Not  a  man  alive — lasting  the  snare  ! 
Escaped  without  death  in  his  mouth." 

Dinnsenchits  of  Mag  Slecht  (Meyer  trans.'). 

This  was  direct  invocation,  but  the  fire  rites 
which  were  continued  so  long  afterwards  were 
really  only  worshipping  the  sun  by  proxy,  in 
his  nearest  likeness,  fire. 

Samhain  was  then  a  day  sacred  to  the 
death  of  the  sun,  on  which  had  been  paid  a 
sacrifice   of  death  to  evil   powers.    Though 


22    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

overcome  at  Moytura  evil  was  ascendant  at 
Samhain.  Methods  of  finding  out  the  will 
of  spirits  and  the  future  naturally  worked 
better  then,  charms  and  invocations  had  more 
power,  for  the  spirits  were  near  to  help,  if  care 
was  taken  not  to  anger  them,  and  due  honors 
paid. 


CHAPTER  IV 

POMONA 

Ops  was  the  Latin  goddess  of  plenty. 
Single  parts  of  her  province  were  taken  over 
by  various  other  divinities,  among  whom  was 
Pomona  {pomorum  patrona,  "  she  who  cares 
for  fruits  ").  She  is  represented  as  a  maiden 
with  fruit  in  her  arms  and  a  pruning-knife  in 
her  hand. 

"  I  am  the  ancient  apple-queen. 
As  once  I  was  so  a^  I  now  — 
For  evermore  a  hope  unseen 
Betwixt  the  blossom  and  the  bough, 

"  Ah,  Where's  the  river's  hidden  gold ! 

And  Where's  the  windy  grave  of  Troy  ? 
Yet  come  I  as  I  came  of  old, 
From  out  the  heart  of  summer's  joy." 

itooRRis :  Pomona. 

Many  Roman  poets  told  storied  about  her,  the 

23 


24    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

best  known  being  by  Ovid,  who  says  that  she 
was  wooed  by  many  orchard-gods,  but  pre- 
ferred to  remain  unmarried.  Among  her 
suitors  was  Vertumnus  ("  the  changer  "),  the 
god  of  the  turning  year,  who  had  charge  of 
the  exchange  of  trade,  the  turning  of  river 
channels,  and  chiefly  of  the  change  in  nature 
from  flower  to  ripe  fruit.  True  to  his  char- 
acter he  took  many  forms  to  gain  Pomona's 
love.  Now  he  was  a  ploughman  (spring), 
now  a  fisherman  (summer),  now  a  reaper 
(autumn). 

At  last  he  took  the  likeness  of  an  old 
woman  (winter),  and  went  to  gossip  with 
Pomona.  After  sounding  her  mind  and 
finding  her  averse  to  marriage,  the  woman 
pleaded  for  Vertumnus's  success. 

"  Is  not  he  the  first  to  have  the  fniits  which 
are  thy  delight?  And  does  he  not  hold  thy 
gifts  in  his  joyous  right  hand  ?  " 

Ovid  :  Vertum/ims  and  Fomorta. 

Then  the  crone  told  her  the  story  of  Anax- 
arete  who  was  so  cold  to  her  lover  I  phis  that 


POMONA  25 

he  hanged  himself,  and  she  at  the  window 
watching  his  funeral  train  pass  by  was 
changed  to  a  marble  statue.  Advising 
Pomona  to  avoid  such  a  fate,  Vertumnus 
donned  his  proper  form,  that  of  a  handsome 
young  man,  and  Pomona,  moved  by  the  story 
and  his  beauty,  yielded  and  became  his  wife. 

Vertumnus  had  a  statue  in  the  Tuscan  Way 
in  Rome,  and  a  temple.  His  festival,  the 
Vortumnalia,  was  held  on  the  23d  of  August, 
when  the  summer  began  to  wane.  Garlands 
and  garden  produce  were  offered  to  him. 

Pomona  had  been  assigned  one  of  the 
fifteen  Jlamina,  priests  whose  duty  it  was  to 
kindle  the  fire  for  special  sacrifices.  She  had 
a  grove  near  Ostia  where  a  harvest  festival 
was  held  about  November  first.  Not  much  is 
known  of  the  ceremonies,  but  from  the 
similar  August  holiday  much  may  be  de- 
duced. Then  the  deities  of  fire  and  water 
were  propitiated  that  their  disfavor  might 
not  ruin  the  crops.  On  Pomona's  day  doubt- 
less thanks  was  rendered  them  for  their  aid 
to  the  harvest.     An  offering  of  first-fruits  was 


26    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

made  in  August ;  in  November  the  winter 
store  of  nuts  and  apples  was  opened.  The 
horses  released  from  toil  contended  in  races. 

From  Pomona's  festival  nuts  and  apples, 
from  the  Druidic  Samhain  the  supernatural 
element,  combined  to  give  later  generations 
the  charms  and  omens  from  nuts  and  apples 
which  are  made  trial  of  at  Hallowe'en. 


CHAPTER  V 

THE  COMING  OF  CHEISTIANITY.     ALL 
SAINTS'.    ALL  SOULS' 

The  great  power  which  the  Druids  exer- 
cised over  their  people  interfered  with  the 
Roman  rule  of  Britain.  Converts  were  being 
made  at  Rome.  Augustus  forbade  Romans 
to  became  initiated,  Tiberius  banished  the 
priestly  clan  and  their  adherents  from  Gaul, 
and  Claudius  utterly  stamped  out  the  belief 
there,  and  put  to  death  a  Roman  knight  for 
wearing  the  serpent's-egg  badge  to  win  a  law- 
suit. Forbidden  to  practise  their  rites  in 
Britain,  the  Druids  fled  to  the  isle  of  Mona, 
near  the  coast  of  Wales.  The  Romans  pur- 
sued them,  and  in  61  a.  d.  they  were  slaugh- 
tered and  their  oak  groves  cut  down.  During 
the  next  three  centuries  the  cult  was  stifled  to 
death,  and  the  Christian  religion  substituted. 

It  was  believed  that  at  Christ's  advent  the 

pagan  gods  either  died  or  were  banished. 

27 


28    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  The  lonely  mountains  o'er 
And  the  resounding  shore 

A  voice  of  weeping  heard,  and  loud  lament. 
From  haunted  spring  and  dale, 
Edged  with  poplar  pale, 

The  parting  genius  is  with  sighing  sent. 
With  flower-inwoven  tresses  torn 
The  nymphs  in  twilight  shade  of  tangled 
thickets  mourn." 

Milton  :  On  the  Morning  of 
Christ's  Nativity. 

The  Christian  Fathers  explained  all  oracles 
and  omens  by  saying  that  there  was  some- 
thing in  them,  but  that  they  were  the  work 
of  the  evil  one.  The  miraculous  power  they 
seemed  to  possess  worked  "  black  magic." 

It  was  a  long,  hard  effort  to  make  men  see 
that  their  gods  had  all  the  time  been  wrong, 
and  harder  still  to  root  out  the  age-long 
growth  of  rite  and  symbol.  But  on  the  old 
religion  might  be  grafted  new  names ;  Mid- 
summer was  dedicated  to  the  birth  of  Saint 
John  ;  Lugnasad  became  Lammas.  The  fires 
belonging  to  these  times  of  year  were  retained, 
their  old  significance   forgotten  or   reconse- 


COMING  OF  CHRISTIANITY     29 

crated.  The  rowan,  or  mountain  ash,  whose 
berries  had  been  the  food  of  the  Tuatha,  now 
exorcised  those  very  beings.  The  trefoil 
signified  the  Trinity,  and  the  cross  no  longer 
the  rays  of  the  sun  on  water,  but  the  cross  of 
Calvary.  The  fires  which  had  been  built 
to  propitiate  the  god  and  consume  his  sac- 
rifices to  induce  him  to  protect  them  were 
now  lighted  to  protect  the  people  from  the 
same  god,  declared  to  be  an  evil  mischief- 
maker.  In  time  the  autumn  festival  of  the 
Druids  became  the  vigil  of  All  Hallows  or  All 
Saints'  Day. 

All  Saints'  was  first  suggested  in  the  fourth 
century,  when  the  Christians  were  no  longer 
persecuted,  in  memory  of  all  the  saints,  since 
there  were  too  many  for  each  to  have  a 
special  day  on  the  church  calendar.  A  day 
in  May  was  chosen  by  Pope  Boniface  IV  in 
610  for  consecrating  the  Pantheon,  the  old 
Roman  temple  of  all  the  gods,  to  the  Virgin 
and  all  the  saints  and  martyrs.  Pope 
Gregory  III  dedicated  a  chapel  in  St.  Peter's 
to  the  same,  and  that  day  was  made  com- 


30    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

pulsory  in  835  by  Pope  Gregory  IV,  as  All 
Saints'.  The  day  was  changed  from  May  to 
November  so  that  the  crowds  that  thronged 
to  Rome  for  the  services  might  be  fed  from 
the  harvest  bounty.  It  is  celebrated  with 
a  special  service  in  the  Greek  and  Roman 
churches  and  by  Episcopalians. 

In  the  tenth  century  St.  Odilo,  Bishop  of 
Cluny,  instituted  a  day  of  prayer  and  special 
masses  for  the  souls  of  the  dead.  He  had 
been  told  that  a  hermit  dwelling  near  a  cave 

"  heard  the  voices  and  bowlings  of  devils,  which 
complained  strongly  because  that  the  souls  of 
them  that  were  dead  were  taken  away  from 
their  hands  by  alms  and  by  prayers." 

De  Voeagine  :  Golden  Legend. 

This  day  became  All  Souls',  and  was  set  for 
November  2d. 

It  is  very  appropriate  that  the  Celtic  festi- 
val when  the  spirits  of  the  dead  and  the  su- 
pernatural powers  held  a  carnival  of  triumph 
over  the  god  of  light,  should  be  followed  by 
All  Saints' and  All  Souls'.     The  church  holy- 


COMING  OF  CHRISTIANITY     31 

days  were  celebrated  by  bonfires  to  light  souls 
through  Purgatory  to  Paradise,  as  they  had 
lighted  the  sun  to  his  death  on  Samhain.  On 
both  occasions  there  were  prayers :  the  pagan 
petitions  to  the  lord  of  death  for  a  pleasant 
dwelling-place  for  the  souls  of  departed 
friends ;  and  the  Christian  for  their  speedy  de- 
liverance from  torture.  They  have  in  com- 
mon the  celebrating  of  death  :  the  one,  of  the 
sun ;  the  other,  of  mortals  :  of  harvest  :  the 
one,  of  crops ;  the  other,  of  sacred  memories. 
They  are  kept  by  revelry  and  joy :  first,  to 
cheer  men  and  make  them  forget  the  malign 
influences  abroad ;  second,  because  as  the 
saints  in  heaven  rejoice  over  one  repentant 
sinner,  we  should  rejoice  over  those  who,  after 
struggles  and  sufferings  past,  have  entered 
into  everlasting  glory. 


**  Mother,  my  Mother,  Mother-Country, 
Yet  were  the  fields  in  bud. 
And  the  harvest, — when  shall  it  rise  again 
Up  through  the  fire  and  flood  ? 


32    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  Mother,  my  Mother,  Mother-Country, 
Was  it  not  all  to  save 
Harvest  of  bread  ? — Harvest  of  men  ? 
And  the  bright  years,  wave  on  wave  ? 

^^  Sea/rch  not,  search  notj  my  way-wonin  j 
Search  neither  weald  nor  wave. 
One  is  their  heavy  reaping-time 
To  the  ea/rthy  that  is  one  wide  grave." 

Masks  :  AU  Souls'  Eve. 


CHAPTER  VI 

OEIGIN   AND  CHAEACTER  OF  HALLOWE'EN 
OMENS 

The  custom  of  making  tests  to  learn  the 
future  comes  from  the  old  system  of  augury 
pom  sacrifice.  Who  sees  in  the  nuts  thrown 
into  the  fire,  turning  in  the  heat,  blazing  and 
growing  black,  the  writhing  victim  of  an  old- 
time  sacrifice  to  an  idol  ? 

Many  superstitions  and  charms  were  be- 
lieved to  be  active  at  any  time,  but  all  those 
and  numerous  special  ones  worked  best  on 
November  Eve.  All  the  tests  of  all  the  Celtic 
festivals  have  been  allotted  to  Hallowe'en. 
Cakes  from  the  May  Eve  fire,  hemp-seed  and 
prophetic  dreams  from  Midsummer,  games 
and  sports  from  Lugnasad  have  survived  in 
varied  forms. 

Tests  are  very  often  tried  blindfold,  so  that 

the  seeker  may  be  guided  by  fate.     Many  are 

33 


34    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

mystic — to  evoke  apparitions  from  the  past  or 
future.  Others  are  tried  with  harvest  grains 
and  fruits.  Because  skill  and  undivided  at- 
tention is  needed  to  carry  them  through  suc- 
cessfully, many  have  degenerated  into  mere 
contests  of  skill,  have  lost  their  meaning,  and 
become  rough  games. 

Answers  are  sought  to  questions  about  one's 
future  career ;  chiefly  to :  when  and  whom 
shall  I  marry  ?  what  will  be  my  profession 
and  degree  of  wealth,  and  when  shall  I  die  ? 


CHAPTER  VII 

HALLOWE'EN  BELIEFS  AND  CUSTOMS 
IN  lEELAND 

Ireland  has  a  literature  of  Hallowe'en,  or 
"  Samhain,"  as  it  used  to  be  called.  Most  of 
it  was  written  between  the  seventh  and  the 
twelfth  centuries,  but  the  events  were  thought 
to  have  happened  while  paganism  still  ruled 
in  Ireland. 

The  evil  powers  that  came  out  at  Samhain 
lived  the  rest  of  the  time  in  the  cave  of 
Cruachan  in  Connaught,  the  province  which 
was  given  to  the  wicked  Fomor  after  the 
battle  of  Moytura.  This  cave  was  called  the 
"  hell-gate  of  Ireland,"  and  was  unlocked  on 
November  Eve  to  let  out  spirits  and  copper- 
colored  birds  which  killed  the  farm  animals. 
They  also  stole  babies,  leaving  in  their  place 
changelings,  goblins  who  were  old  in  wicked- 
ness while  still  in  the  cradle,  possessing 
superhuman    cunning    and    skill   in   music. 

One  way  of  getting  rid  of  these  demon  chil- 

35 


36    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

dreii  was  to  ill-treat  them  so  that  their  people 
would  come  for  them,  bringing  the  right  ones 
back ;  or  one  might  boil  egg-shells  in  the 
sight  of  the  changeling,  who  would  declare 
his  demon  nature  by  saying  that  in  his  cen- 
turies of  life  he  had  never  seen  such  a  thing 
before. 

Brides  too  were  stolen. 

"  You  shall  go  with  me,  newly  married  bride, 
And  gaze  upon  a  merrier  multitude ; 
White-armed  Nuala  and  ^ngus  of  the  birds. 
And  Feacra  of  the  hurthng  foam,  and  him 
Who  is  the  ruler  of  the  western  host, 
Finvarra,  and  the  Land  of  Heart's  Desire, 
Where  beauty  has  no  ebb,  decay  no  flood, 
But  joy  is  wisdom,  time  an  endless  song." 

Yeats  :  La7id  of  HearVs  Desire. 

In  the  first  century  b.  c.  lived  Ailill  and 
his  queen  Medb.  As  they  were  celebrating 
their  Samhain  feast  in  the  palace, 

"  Three  days  before  Samhain  at  all  times. 
And  three  days  after,  by  ancient  custom 
Did  the  hosts  of  high  aspiration 
Continue  to  feast  for  the  whole  week." 

O'CiARAiN :  Loch  Garman. 


HALLOWE*EN  IN  IRELAND     37 

they  offered  a  reward  to  the  man  who  should 
tie  a  bundle  of  twigs  about  the  feet  of  a  crim* 
inal  who  had  been  hanged  by  the  gate.  It 
was  dangerous  to  go  near  dead  bodies  on 
November  Eve,  but  a  bold  young  man  named 
Nera  dared  it,  and  tied  the  twigs  successfully. 
As  he  turned  to  go  he  saw 

"  the  whole  of  the  palace  as  if  on  fire  before 
him,  and  the  heads  of  the  people  of  it  lying  on 
the  ground,  and  then  he  thought  he  saw  an 
army  going  into  the  hill  of  Cruachan,  and  he 
followed  after  the  army." 

Geegory  :  Cuchulain  of  MuiHhemne. 

The  door  was  shut.  Nera  was  married  to  a 
fairy  woman,  who  betrayed  her  kindred  by 
sending  Nera  to  warn  King  Ailill  of  the  in- 
tended attack  upon  his  palace  the  next 
November  Eve.  Nera  bore  summer  fruits 
with  him  to  prove  that  he  had  been  in  the 
fairy  sid.  The  next  November  Eve,  when  the 
doors  were  opened  Ailill  entered  and  dis- 
covered the  crown,  emblem  of  power,  took  it 
away,  and  plundered  the  treasury.  Nera 
never  returned  again  to  the  homes  of  men. 


(iH4H7 


38     THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

Another  story  of  about  the  same  time  was 
that  of  Angus,  the  son  of  a  Tuatha  god,  to 
whom  in  a  dream  a  beautiful  maiden  ap- 
peared. He  wasted  away  with  love  for  her, 
and  searched  the  country  for  a  girl  who 
should  look  like  her.  At  last  he  saw  in  a 
meadow  among  a  hundred  and  fifty  maidens, 
each  with  a  chain  of  silver  about  her  neck, 
one  who  was  like  the  beauty  of  his  dream. 
She  wore  a  golden  chain  about  her  throat, 
and  was  the  daughter  of  King  Ethal  Anbual. 
King  Ethal's  palace  was  stormed  by  Ailill, 
and  he  was  forced  to  give  up  his  daughter. 
He  gave  as  a  reason  for  withholding  his  con- 
sent so  long,  that  on  Samhain  Princess  Caer 
changed  from  a  maiden  to  a  swan,  and  back 
again  the  next  year. 

"  And  when  the  time  came  Angus  went  to  the 
loch,  and  he  saw  the  three  times  fifty  white 
birds  there  with  their  silver  chains  about  their 
necks,  and  Angus  stood  in  a  man's  shape  at  the 
edge  of  the  loch,  and  he  called  to  the  girl: 
*  Come  and  speak  with  me,  0  Caer  ! ' 
** '  Who  is  calling  me  ? '  said  Caer. 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND     39 

" '  Angus  calls  you,'  he  said,  *  and  if  you  do 
come,  I  swear  by  my  word  I  will  not  hinder 
you  from  going  into  the  loch  again.'  " 

GreCtORY  :  Cuchulain  of  MuirtTiemTie. 

She  came,  and  he  changed  to  a  swan  like- 
wise, and  they  flew  away  to  King  Dagda's 
palace,  where  every  one  who  heard  their  sweet 
singing  was  charmed  into  a  sleep  of  three  days 
and  three  nights. 

Princess  Etain,  of  the  race  of  the  Tuatha, 
and  wife  of  Midir,  was  born  again  as  the 
daughter  of  Queen  Medb,  the  wife  of  Ailill. 
She  remembers  a  little  of  the  land  from  which 
she  came,  is  never  quite  happy, 

"  But  sometimes — sometimes — tell  me :  have 
you  heard, 
By  dusk  or  moonset  have  you  never  heard 
Sweet  voices,  delicate  music  ?    Never  seen 
The  passage  of  the  lordly  beautiful  ones 
Men  call  the  Shee  ?  " 

Sharp  :  Immortal  Hour. 

even  when  she  wins  the  love  of  King  Eoch- 
aidh.     When  they  have  been  married  a  year, 


40    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

there  comes  Midir  from  the  Land  of  Youth. 
By  winning  a  game  of  chess  from  the  King, 
he  gets  anything  he  may  ask,  and  prays  to  see 
the  Queen.  When  he  sees  her  he  sings  a  song 
of  longing  to  her,  and  Eochaidh  is  troubled 
because  it  is  Samhain,  and  he  knows  the  great 
power  the  hosts  of  the  air  "  have  then  over 
those  who  wish  for  happiness." 

"  Etain,  speak ! 
What  is  the  song  the  harper  sings,  what  tongue 
Is  this  he  speaks  ?  for  in  no  Gaelic  lands 
Is  speech  Uke  this  upon  the  Ups  of  men. 
No  word  of  all  these  honey-dripping  words 
Is  known  to  me.     Beware,  beware  the  words 
Brewed  in  the  moonshine  under  ancient  oaks 
White  with  pale  banners  of  the  mistletoe 
Twined  round  them  in  their  slow  and  stately 

death. 
It  is  the  feast  of  Saveen  "  (Samhain). 

Sharp  :  Immortal  Hour, 

In  vain  Eochaidh  pleads  with  her  to  stay 
with  him.  She  has  already  forgotten  all  but 
Midir  and  the  life  so  long  ago  in  the  Land  of 
Youth. 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    41 

"In  the  Land  of  Youth 

There  are  pleasant  places  ; 
Green  meadows,  woods, 
Swift  grey-blue  waters. 

"  There  is  no  age  there, 
Nor  any  sorrow. 
As  the  stars  in  heaven 
Are  the  cattle  in  the  valleys. 

"  Great  rivers  wander 

Through  flowery  plains. 
Streams  of  milk,  of  mead, 
Streams  of  strong  ale. 

**  There  is  no  hunger 
And  no  thirst 
In  the  Hollow  Land, 
In  the  Land  of  Youth.** 

Shabp  :  ImmoHal  Hour, 

She  and  Midir  fly  away  in  the  form  of  two 
swans,  linked  by  a  chain  of  gold. 

Cuchulain,  hopelessly  sick  of  a  strange  ill- 
ness brought  on  by  Fand  and  Liban,  fairy 
sisters,  was  visited  the  day  before  Samhain  by 
a  messenger,  who  promised  to  cure  him  if  he 


42    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

would  go  to  the  Otherworld.  Cuchulain 
could  not  make  up  his  mind  to  go,  but  sent 
Laeg,  his  charioteer.  Such  glorious  reports 
did  Laeg  bring  back  from  the  Otherworld, 

"  If  all  Erin  were  mine, 

And  the  kingship  of  yellow  Bregia, 
I  would  give  it,  no  trifling  deed, 
To  dwell  for  aye  in  the  place  I  reached." 
Cuchulain^ 8  Sick-bed.     (Meyer  trans.) 

that  Cuchulain  went  thither,  and  championed 
the  people  there  against  their  enemies.  He 
stayed  a  month  with  the  fairy  Fand.  Emer, 
his  wife  at  home,  was  beset  with  jealousy,  and 
plotted  against  Fand,  who  had  followed  her 
hero  home.  Fand  in  fear  returned  to  her  de- 
serted husband,  Emer  was  given  a  Druidic 
drink  to  drown  her  jealousy,  and  Cuchulain 
another  to  forget  his  infatuation^  and  they 
lived  happily  afterward. 

Even  after  Christianity  was  made  the  vital 
religion  in  Ireland,  it  was  believed  that  places 
not  exorcised  by  prayers  and  by  the  sign  of 
the  cross,  were  still  haunted  by  Druids.     As 


HALLOWE^EN  IN  IRELAND    43 

late  as  the  fifth  century  the  Druids  kept 
their  skill  in  fortune-telling.  King  Dathi 
got  a  Druid  to  foretell  what  would  happen  to 
him  from  one  Hallowe'en  to  the  next,  and 
the  prophecy  came  true.  Their  religion  was 
now  declared  evil,  and  all  evil  or  at  any  rate 
suspicious  beings  were  assigned  to  them  or  to 
the  devil  as  followers. 

"  Maire  Bruin : 

Are  not  they,  likewise,  the  children  of  God  ? 
Father  Hart : 

Colleen,  they  are  the  children  of  the  fiend, 
And  they  have  power  until  the  end  of  Time, 
"When  God  shall  fight  with  them  a  great 

pitched  battle 
And  hack  them  into  pieces." 

Yeats  :  Land  of  HearVa  Desire. 

The  power  of  fairy  music  was  so  great  that 
St.  Patrick  himself  was  put  to  sleep  by  a 
minstrel  who  appeared  to  him  on  the  day 
before  Samhain.  The  Tuatha  De  Danann, 
angered  at  the  renegade  people  who  no  longer 
did  them  honor,  sent  another  minstrel,  who 
after  laying  the  ancient  religious  seat  Tara 


44     THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

under  a  twenty-three  years'  charm,  burned 
up  the  city  with  his  fiery  breath. 

These  infamous  spirits  dwelt  in  grassy 
mounds,  called  "  forts,"  which  were  the 
entrances  to  underground  palaces  full  of 
treasure,  where  was  always  music  and  danc- 
ing. These  treasure-houses  were  open  only 
on  November  Eve 

"  For  the  fairy  mounds  of  Erinn  are  always 
opened  about  Hallowe'en." 

Expeditio7i  of  Neva.     (Meyer  trans.) 

when  the  throngs  of  spirits,  fairies,  and  gob- 
lins trooped  out  for  revels  about  the  country. 
The  old  Druid  idea  of  obsession,  the  be- 
sieging of  a  person  by  an  evil  spirit,  was 
practised  by  them  at  that  time. 

"  This  is  the  first  day  of  the  winter,  and  to-day  the 
Hosts  of  the  Air  are  in  their  greatest  power." 

Wareen  :  Ticig  of  Thorn. 

If  the  fairies  wished  to  seize  a  mortal — which 
power  they  had  as  the  sun-god  could  take 
men   to   himself — they   caused   him   to  give 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    45 

them  certain  tokens  by  which  he  delivered 
himself  into  their  hands.  They  might  be 
milk  and  fire  — 

"  Maire  Bruin  : 

A  little  queer  old  woman  cloaked  in  green, 
Who  came  to  beg  a  porringer  of  milk. 
Bridget  Bruin  : 
The  good  people  go  asking  milk  and  fire 
Upon  May  Eve — woe  to  the  house  that  gives, 
For  they  have  power  over  it  for  a  year." 

Yeats  ;  Land  of  Heai'Vs  Desire. 

or  one  might  receive  a  fairy  thorn  such  as 
Oonah  brings  home,  which  shrivels  up  at  the 
touch  of  St.  Bridget's  image ; 

"  Oh,  ever  since  I  kept  the  twig  of  thorn  and 
hid  it,  T  have  seen  strange  things,  and  heard 
strange  laughter  and  far  voices  calling." 

Waeeen  :  Twig  of  Thwn. 

or  one  might  be  lured  by  music  as  be  stopped 
near  the  fort  to  watch  the  dancing,  for  the 
revels  were  held  in  secret,  as  those  of  the 
Druids  had  been,  and  no  one  could  look  on 
them  unaffected. 


46    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE*EN 

A  story  is  told  of  Paddy  More,  a  great  stout^  ^ 
uncivil  churl,  and  Paddy  Beg,  a  cheerful  little 
hunchback.  The  latter,  seeing  lights  and 
hearing  music,  paused  by  a  mound,  and  was 
invited  in.  Urged  to  tell  stories,  he  com- 
plied ;  he  danced  as  spryly  as  he  could  fof 
his  deformity  ;  he  sang,  and  made  himself  so 
agreeable  that  the  fairies  decided  to  take  the 
hump  ofP  his  back,  and  send  him  home  a 
straight  manly  fellow.  The  next  Hallowe'en 
who  should  come  by  the  same  place  but 
Paddy  More,  and  he  stopped  likewise  to  spy 
at  the  merrymaking.  He  too  was  called  in, 
but  would  not  dance  politely,  added  no  stories 
nor  songs.  The  fairies  clapped  Paddy  Beg's 
hump  on  his  back,  and  dismissed  him  under 
a  double  burden  of  discomfort. 

A  lad  called  Quleesh,  listening  outside  a 
fort  on  Hallowe'en  heard  the  spirits  speaking 
of  the  fatal  illness  of  his  betrothed,  the 
daughter  of  the  King  of  France.  They  said 
that  if  Guleesh  but  knew  it,  he  might  boil  an 
herb  that  grew  by  his  door  and  give  it  to 
the   princess   and   make  her  well.     Joyfully 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    47 

Guleesh   hastened   home,  prepared  the  herb, 
and  cured  the  royal  girl. 

Sometimes  people  did  not  have  the  luck  to 
return,  but  were  led  away  to  a  realm  of  per- 
petual youth  and  music. 

"  Father  Hart.     What  are  you  reading  ? 
Maire  Bruin.  How  a  Princess  Edane, 

A  daughter  of  a  King  of  Ireland,  heard 
A  voice  singing  on  a  May  Eve  like  this, 
And  followed,  half  awake  and  half  asleep, 
Until  she  came  into  the  land  of  faery, 
Where  nobody  gets  old  and  godly  and  grave, 
Where  nobody  gets  old  and  crafty  and  wise, 
Where  nobody  gets  old  and  bitter  of  tongue ; 
And  she  is  still  there,  busied  with  a  dance, 
Deep  in  the  dewy  shadow  of  a  wood, 
Or  where  stars  walk  upon  a  mountain-top." 

Yeats:  Land  of  HearV  s  Desire. 

If  one  returned,  he  found  that  the  space 
which  seemed  to  him  but  one  night,  had  been 
many  years,  and  with  the  touch  of  earthly 
sod  the  age  he  had  postponed  suddenly 
weighed  him  down.  Ossian,  released  from 
fairyland  after  three  hundred  years  dalliance 
there,  rode  back  to  his  own  country  on  horse- 


48    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

back.  He  saw  men  imprisoned  under  a  block 
of  marble  and  others  trying  to  lift  the  stone. 
As  he  leaned  over  to  aid  them  the  girth 
broke.  With  the  touch  of  earth  "  straightway 
the  white  horse  fled  away  on  his  way  home, 
and  Ossian  became  aged,  decrepit,  and  blind." 
No  place  as  much  as  Ireland  has  kept  the 
belief  in  all  sorts  of  supernatural  spirits 
abroad  among  its  people.  From  the  time 
when  on  the  hill  of  Ward,  near  Tara,  in  pre- 
Christian  days,  the  sacrifices  were  burned  and 
the  Tuatha  were  thought  to  appear  on  Sam- 
hain,  to  as  late  as  1910,  testimony  to  actual 
appearances  of  the  "  little  people "  is  to  be 
found. 

"  '  Among  the  usually  invisible  races  which  I 
have  seen  in  Ireland,  I  distinguish  five  classes. 
There  are  the  Gnomes,  who  are  earth-spirits,  and 
who  seem  to  be  a  sorrowful  race.  I  once  saw 
some  of  them  distinctly  on  the  side  of  Ben  Bul- 
bin.  They  had  rather  round  heads  and  dark 
thick-set  bodies,  and  in  stature  were  about  two 
and  one-half  feet.  The  Leprechauns  are  differ- 
ent, being  full  of  mischief,  though  they,  too,  are 
small.     I  followed  a  Leprechaun  from  the  town 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    49 

of  "Wicklow  out  to  the  Carraig  Sidhe,  "  Rock  of 
the  Fairies,"  a  distance  of  half  a  mile  or  more, 
where  he  disappeared.  He  had  a  very  merry 
face,  and  beckoned  to  me  with  his  finger.  A 
third  class  are  the  Little  People,  who,  unlike  the 
Gnomes  and  Leprechauns,  are  quite  good-look- 
ing ;  and  they  are  very  small.  The  Good  People 
are  tall,  beautiful  beings,  as  tall  as  ourselves. 
.  .  .  They  direct  the  magnetic  currents  of 
the  earth.  The  Gods  are  really  the  Tuatha  De 
Danann,  and  they  are  much  taller  than  our 
race.' " 

Wentz  :  Fairy-faith  in  Celtic  Countries. 

The  sight  of  apparitions  on  Hallowe'en  is 
believed  to  be  fatal  to  the  beholder. 

"  One  night  my  lady's  soul  walked  along  the 
wall  like  a  cat.  Long  Tom  Bowman  beheld  her 
and  that  day  week  fell  he  into  the  well  and  was 
drowned." 

Pyle  :  Priest  and  the  Fijper. 

One  version  of  the  Jack-o'-lantern  story 
comes  from  Ireland.  A  stingy  man  named 
Jack  was  for  his  inhospitality  barred  from  all 
hope  of  heaven,  and  because  of  practical  jokes 


so    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

on  the  Devil  was  locked  out  of  hell.  Until 
the  Judgment  Day  he  is  condemned  to  walk 
the  earth  with  a  lantern  to  light  his  way. 

The  place  of  the  old  lord  of  the  dead,  the 
Tuatha  god  Saman,  to  whom  vigil  was  kept 
and  prayers  said  on  November  Eve  for  the 
good  of  departed  souls,  was  taken  in  Christian 
times  by  St.  Colomba  or  Columb  Kill,  the 
founder  of  a  monastery  in  lona  in  the  fifth 
century.  In  the  seventeenth  century  the 
Irish  peasants  went  about  begging  money  and 
goodies  for  a  feast,  and  demanding  in  the 
name  of  Columb  Kill  that  fatted  calves  and 
black  sheep  be  prepared.  In  place  of  the 
Druid  fires,  candles  were  collected  and  lighted 
on  Hallowe'en,  and  prayers  for  the  souls  of 
the  givers  said  before  them.  The  name  of 
Saman  is  kept  in  the  title  "  Oidhche 
Shamhna,"  "  vigil  of  Saman,"  by  which  the 
night  of  October  31st  was  until  recently  called 
in  Ireland. 

There  are  no  Hallowe'en  bonfires  in  Ireland 
now,  but  charms  and  tests  are  tried.  Apples 
and    nuts,   the   treasure  of   Pomona,   figure 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    51 

largely  in  these.  They  are  representative 
winter  fruits,  the  commonest.  They  can  be 
gathered  late  and  kept  all  winter. 

A  popular  drink  at  the  Hallowe'en  gather- 
ing in  the  eighteenth  century  was  milk  in 
which  crushed  roasted  apples  had  been  mixed. 
It  was  called  lambs'-wool  (perhaps  from  "  La 
Mas  Ubhal,"  "the  day  of  the  apple  fruit"). 
At  the  Hallowe'en  supper  "  callcannon," 
mashed  potatoes,  parsnips,  and  chopped 
onions,  is  indispensable.  A  ring  is  buried 
in  it,  and  the  one  who  finds  it  in  his  portion 
will  be  married  in  a  year,  or  if  he  is  already 
married,  will  be  lucky. 

"  They  had  colcannon,  and  the  funniest  things 
were  found  in  it — tiny  dolls,  mice,  a  pig  made  of 
china,  silver  sixpences,  a  thimble,  a  ring,  and 
lots  of  other  things.  After  supper  was  over  all 
went  into  the  big  play-room,  and  dived  for 
apples  in  a  tub  of  water,  fished  for  prizes  in  a 
basin  of  flour ;  then  there  were  games " 

Teant  :  HaJloioe^en  in  Ireland, 

A  coin  betokened  to  the  finder  wealth  ;  the 
thimble,  that  he  would  never  marry. 


52    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

A  ring  and  a  nut  are  baked  in  a  cake.  The 
ring  of  course  means  early  marriage,  the  nut 
signifies  that  its  finder  will  marry  a  widow  or 
a  widower.  If  the  kernel  is  withered,  no 
marriage  at  all  is  prophesied.  In  Roscom- 
mon, in  central  Ireland,  a  coin,  a  sloe,  and  a 
bit  of  wood  were  baked  in  a  cake.  The  one 
getting  the  sloe  would  live  longest,  the  one 
getting  the  wood  was  destined  to  die  within 
the  year. 

A  mould  of  flour  turned  out  on  the  table 
held  similar  tokens.  Each  person  cut  off  a 
slice  with  a  knife,  and  drew  out  his  prize  with 
his  teeth. 

After  supper  the  tests  were  tried.     In  the  ^^ 
last   century   nut-shells   were   burned.      The     j 
best-known  nut  test  is  made  as  follows  :  three     J 
nuts   are   named   for  a  girl  and  two  sweet- 
hearts.    If  one  burns  steadily  with  the  girl's 
nut,  that  lover  is  faithful  to  her,  but  if  either 
hers   or   one  of  the  other  nuts  starts  away, 
there  will   be  no  happy  friendship  between 
them. 

Apples  are  snapped  from  the  end  of  a  stick 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    53 

hung  parallel  to  the  floor  by  a  twisted  cord 
which  whirls  the  stick  rapidly  when  it  is  let 
go.  Care  has  to  be  taken  not  to  bite  the 
candle  burning  on  the  other  end.  Some- 
times this  test  is  made  easier  by  dropping  the 
apples  into  a  tub  of  water  and  diving  for 
them,  or  piercing  them  with  a  fork  dropped 
straight  down. 

Green  herbs  called  "livelong"  were  plucked 
by  the  children  and  hung  up  on  Midsummer 
Eve.  If  a  plant  was  found  to  be  still  green 
on  Hallowe'en,  the  one  who  had  hung  it  up 
would  prosper  for  the  year,  but  if  it  had 
turned  yellow  or  had  died,  the  child  would 
also  die. 

Hemp-seed  is  sown  across  three  furrows,  the 
sower  repeating :  "  Hemp-seed,  I  saw  thee, 
hemp-seed,  I  saw  thee  ;  and  her  that  is  to  be 
my  true  love,  come  after  me  and  draw  thee." 
On  looking  back  over  his  shoulder  he  will  see 
the  apparition  of  his  future  wife  in  the  act  of 
gathering  hemp. 

Seven  cabbage  stalks  were  named  for  any 
seven  of  the  company,  then  pulled  up,  and 


54    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

the  guests  asked  to  come  out,  and  "  see  their 
sowls." 

"  One,  two,  three,  and  up  to  seven ; 
If  all  are  white,  all  go  to  heaven ; 
If  one  is  black  as  Murtagh's  evil. 
He'll  soon  be  screechin'  wi'  the  devil." 

Red  Mike  "  was  a  queer  one  from  his  birth, 

an'   no   wonder,  for   he   first  saw  the   light 

atween  dusk  an'  dark  o'  a  Hallowe'en  Eve." 

When  the  cabbage  test  was  tried  at  a  party 

where  Mike  was  present,  six  stalks  were  found 

to  be  white,  but  Mike's  was  "  all  black  an' 

fowl  wi'  worms  an'  slugs,  an'  wi'  a  real  bad 

smell  ahint  it."     Angered  at  the  ridicule  he 

received,  he  cried :  "  I've  the  gift  o'  the  night, 

I  have,  an'  on  this  day  my  curse  can  blast 

whatever     I    choose."     At    that    the    priest 

showed   Mike  a  crucifix,  and   he  ran  away 

howling,  and  disappeared  through  a  bog  into 

the  ground. 

Shaep  :  Threefold  Chronicle. 

Twelve  of  the  party  may  learn  their  future, 
if  one  gets  a  clod  of  earth  from  the  church- 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    SS 

yard,  sets  up  twelve  candles  in  it,  lights  and 
names  them.  The  fortune  of  each  will  be  like 
that  of  the  candle-light  named  for  him, — 
steady,  wavering,  or  soon  in  darkness. 

A  ball  of  blue  yarn  was  thrown  out  of  the 
window  by  a  girl  who  held  fast  to  the  end. 
She  wound  it  over  on  her  hand  from  left  to 
right,  saying  the  Creed  backwards.  When  she 
had  nearly  finished,  she  expected  the  yarn 
would  be  held.  She  must  ask  "Who  holds?" 
and  the  wind  would  sigh  her  sweetheart's  name 
in  at  the  window. 

In  some  charms  the  devil  was  invoked 
directly.  If  one  walked  about  a  rick  nine 
times  with  a  rake,  saying,  "  I  rake  this  rick 
in  the  devil's  name,"  a  vision  would  come 
and  take  away  the  rake. 

If  one  went  out  with  nine  grains  of  oats  in 
his  mouth,  and  walked  about  until  he  heard  a 
girl's  name  called  or  mentioned,  he  would 
know  the  name  of  his  future  wife,  for  they 
would  be  the  same. 

Lead  is  melted,  and  poured  through  a  key 
or   a  ring   into  cold  water.     The  form  each 


56    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

spoonful  takes  in  cooling  indicates  the  occu- 
pation of  the  future  husband  of  the  girl  who 
poured  it. 

"  Now  something  like  a  horse  would  cause  the 
jubilant  maiden  to  call  out,  '  A  dragoon  1 '  Now 
some  dim  resemblance  to  a  helmet  would  sug- 
gest a  handsome  member  of  the  mounted 
police ;  or  a  round  object  with  a  spike  would 
seem  a  ship,  and  this  of  course  meant  a  sailor ; 
or  a  cow  would  suggest  a  cattle-dealer,  or  a 
plough  a  farmer." 

Sharp  :  Threefold  Chronicle. 

After  the  future  had  been  searched,  a  piper 
played  a  jig,  to  which  all  danced  merrily  with 
a  loud  noise  to  scare  away  the  evil  spirits. 

Just  before  midnight  was  the  time  to  go 
out  "  alone  and  unperceived  "  to  a  south-run- 
ning brook,  dip  a  shirt-sleeve  in  it,  bring  it 
home  and  hang  it  by  the  fire  to  dry.  One 
must  go  to  bed,  but  watch  till  midnight  for  a 
sight  of  the  destined  mate  who  would  come 
to  turn  the  shirt  to  dry  the  other  side. 

Ashes  were  raked  smooth  on  the  hearth  at 
bedtime  on  Hallowe'en,  and  the  next  morn- 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  IRELAND    S7 

ing  examined  for  footprints.  If  one  was 
turned  from  the  door,  guests  or  a  marriage  was 
prophesied  ;  if  toward  the  door,  a  death. 

To  have  prophetic  dreams  a  girl  should 
search  for  a  briar  grown  into  a  hoop,  creep 
through  thrice  in  the  name  of  the  devil,  cut 
it  in  silence,  and  go  to  bed  with  it  under  her 
pillow.  A  boy  should  cut  ten  ivy  leaves, 
throw  away  one  and  put  the  rest  under  his 
head  before  he  slept. 

If  a  girl  leave  beside  her  bed  a  glass  of 
water  with  a  sliver  of  wood  in  it,  and  say  be* 
fore  she  falls  asleep  : 

"  Husband  mine  that  is  to  be, 
Come  this  night  and  rescue  me," 

she  will  dream  of  falling  off  a  bridge  into  the 
water,  and  of  being  saved  at  the  last  minute 
by  the  spirit  of  her  future  husband.  To  re- 
ceive a  drink  from  his  hand  she  must  eat  a 
cake  of  flour,  soot,  and  salt  before  she  goes  to 
bed. 

The  Celtic  spirit  of  yearning  for  the  un- 
known, retained  nowhere  else  as  much  as  in 


58    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

Ireland,  is  expressed  very  beautifully  by  the 
poet  Yeats  in  the  introduction  to  his  Celtic 
Twilight. 

"  The  host  is  riding  from  Knocknarea 
And  over  the  grave  of  Clooth-na-bare ; 
Caolte  tossing  his  burning  hair, 
And  Niam  calling :  '  Away,  come  away ; 

"  '  And  brood  no  more  where  the  fire  is  bright, 
Filling  thy  heart  with  a  mortal  dream ; 
For  breasts  are  heaving  and  eyes  a-gleam : 
Away,  come  away  to  the  dim  twilight 

" '  Arms  are  heaving  and  lips  apart ; 

And  if  any  gaze  on  our  rushing  band, 
We  come  between  him  and  the  deed  of  his 
hand. 
We  come  between  him  and  the  hope  of  his  heart.' 

"  The  host  is  rushing  twixt  night  and  day, 
And  where  is  there  hope  or  deed  as  fair  ? 
Caolte  tossing  his  burning  hair, 
And  Niam  calling :  *  Away,  come  away.' " 


CHAPTER  VIII 
m  SCOTLAND  AND  THE  HEBEIDES 

As  in  Ireland  the  Scotch  Baal  festival  of 
November  was  called  Samhain.  Western 
Scotland,  lying  nearest  Tara,  center  alike  of 
pagan  and  Christian  religion  in  Ireland,  was 
colonized  by  both  the  people  and  the  customs 
of  eastern  Ireland. 

The  November  Eve  fires  which  in  Ireland 
either  died  out  or  were  replaced  by  candles 
were  continued  in  Scotland.  In  Buchan, 
where  was  the  altar-source  of  the  Samhain 
fire,  bonfires  were  lighted  on  hilltops  in  the 
eighteenth  century  ;  and  in  Moray  the  idea  of  | 
fires  of  thanksgiving  for  harvest  was  kept 
to  as  late  as  1866.  All  through  the  eight-! 
eenth  century  in  the  Highlands  and  in 
Perthshire  torches  of  heath,  broom,  flax,  or 
ferns  were  carried  about  the  fields  and  vil- 
lages by  each  family,  with  the  intent  to  cause 

59 


6o    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

good  crops  in  succeeding  years.  The  course 
about  the  fields  was  sunwise,  to  have  a  good 
influence.  Brought  home  at  dark,  the  torches 
were  thrown  down  in  a  heap,  and  made  a  fire. 
This  blaze  was  called  "  Samhnagan,"  "  of  rest 
and  pleasure."  There  was  much  competition 
to  have  the  largest  fire.  Each  person  put  in 
one  stone  to  make  a  circle  about  it.  The 
young  people  ran  about  with  burning  brands. 
Supper  was  eaten  out-of-doors,  and  games 
played.  After  the  fire  had  burned  out,  ashes 
were  raked  over  the  stones.  In  the  morning 
each  sought  his  pebble,  and  if  he  found  it 
misplaced,  harmed,  or  a  footprint  marked 
near  it  in  the  ashes,  he  believed  he  should  die 
in  a  year. 

In  Aberdeenshire  boys  went  about  the 
villages  saying :  "  Ge's  a  peat  t'  burn  the 
witches."  They  were  thought  to  be  out  steal- 
ing milk  and  harming  cattle.  Torches  used 
to  counteract  them  were  carried  from  west  to 
east,  against  the  sun.  This  ceremony  grew 
into  a  game,  when  a  fire  was  built  by  one 
party,  attacked  by  another,  and  defended.     As 


IN  SCOTLAND  6i 

in  the  May  fires  of  purification  the  lads  lay 
down  in  the  smoke  close  by,  or  ran  about  and 
jumped  over  the  flames.  As  the  fun  grew 
wilder  they  flung  burning  peats  at  each  other, 
scattered  the  ashes  with  their  feet,  and  hur- 
ried from  one  fire  to  another  to  have  a  part  in 
scattering  as  many  as  possible  before  they  died 
out. 

In  1874,  at  Balmoral,  a  royal  celebration  of 
Hallowe'en  was  recorded.  Royalty,  tenants, 
and  servants  bore  torches  through  the  grounds 
and  round  the  estates.  In  front  of  the  castle 
was  a  heap  of  stuff  saved  for  the  occasion. 
The  torches  were  thrown  on.  When  the  fire 
was  burning  its  liveliest,  a  hobgoblin  ap- 
peared, drawing  in  a  car  the  figure  of  a  witch, 
surrounded  by  fairies  carrying  lances.  The 
people  formed  a  circle  about  the  fire,  and  the 
witch  was  tossed  in.  Then  there  were  dances 
to  the  music  of  bag-pipes. 

It  was  the  time  of  year  when  servants 
changed  masters  or  signed  up  anew  under  the 
old  ones.  They  might  enjoy  a  holiday  before 
resuming  work.     So  they  sang  : 


62    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  This  is  Hallaeven, 
The  morn  is  Halladay  ; 
Nine  free  nichts  till  Martinmas, 
As  soon  they'll  wear  away." 

Children  born  on  Hallowe'en  could  see  and 
converse  with  supernatural  powers  more 
easily  than  others.  In  Ireland,  evil  relations 
caused  Red  Mike's  downfall  (q.  v.).  For  Scot- 
land Mary  Avenel,  in  Scott's  Monastery,  is  the 
classic  example. 

"  And  touching  the  bairn,  it's  weel  kenn'd  she 
was  born  on  Hallowe'en,  and  they  that  are  born 
on  Hallowe'en  whiles  see  mair  than  ither  folk." 

There  is  no  hint  of  dark  relations,  but  rather 
of  a  clear-sightedness  which  lays  bare  truths, 
even  those  concealed  in  men's  breasts.  Mary 
Avenel  sees  the  spirit  of  her  father  after  he 
has  been  dead  for  years.  The  White  Lady  of 
Avenel  is  her  peculiar  guardian. 

The  Scottish  Border,  where  Mary  lived,  is 
the  seat  of  many  superstitions  and  other 
worldly  beliefs.  The  fairies  of  Scotland  are 
more  terrible   than  those  of  Ireland,  as  the 


IN  SCOTLAND  63 

dells  and  streams  and  woods  are  of  greater 
grandeur,  and  the  character  of  the  people 
more  serious.  It  is  unlucky  to  name  the 
fairies,  here  as  elsewhere,  except  by  such 
placating  titles  as  "  Good  Neighbors  "  or  "  Men 
of  Peace."  Rowan,  elm,  and  holly  are  a  pro- 
tection against  them. 

"I  have  tied  red  thread  round  the  bairns' 
throats,  and  given  ilk  ane  of  them  a  riding-wand 
of  rowan-tree,  forbye  sewing  up  a  shp  of  witch- 
elm  into  their  doublets ;  and  I  wish  to  know  of 
your  reverence  if  there  be  onything  mair  that  a 
lone  woman  can  do  in  the  matter  of  ghosts  and 
fah'ies  ? — be  here !  that  I  should  have  named 
their  unlucky  names  twice  ower ! " 

SooTT:  Monastery. 

"  The  sign  of  the  cross  disarmeth  all  evil 
spirits." 

These  spirits  of  the  air  have  not  human 
feelings  or  motives.  They  are  conscienceless. 
In  this  respect  Peter  Pan  is  an  immortal  fairy 
as  well  as  an  immortal  child.  While  like  a 
child  he  resents  injustice  in  horrified  silence, 
like  a  fairy  he  acts  with  no  sense  of  responsi- 


64    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

bility.     When  he  saves  Wendy's  brother  from 
falling  as  they  fly, 

"  You  felt  it  was  his  cleverness  that  interested 
him,  and  not  the  saving  of  human  Ufe." 

BAitKiE  :  Feter  and  Wendy, 

The  world  in  which  Peter  lived  was  so  near 
the  Kensington  Gardens  that  he  could  see 
them  through  the  bridge  as  he  sat  on  the 
shore  of  the  Neverland.  Yet  for  a  long  time 
he  could  not  get  to  them. 

Peter  is  a  fairy  piper  who  steals  away  the 
souls  of  children. 

**  No  man  alive  has  seen  me, 
But  women  hear  me  play, 
Sometimes  at  door  or  window, 

Fiddling  the  souls  away  — 
The  child's  soul  and  the  colleen's 
Out  of  the  covering  clay." 

HoPPEE  :  Fairy  Fiddler, 

On  Hallowe'en  all  traditional  spirits  are 
abroad.  The  Scotch  invented  the  idea  of  a 
"  Samhanach/'  a  goblin  who  comes  out  juet 


IN  SCOTLAND  65 

at  "  Samhain."  It  is  he  who  in  Ireland  steals 
children.     The  fairies  pass  at  crossroads, 

"  But  the  night  is  Hallowe'en,  lady, 
The  morn  is  Hallowday ; 
Then  win  me,  win  me,  and  ye  will, 
For  weel  I  wot  ye  may. 

**  Just  at  the  mirk  and  midnight  hour 
The  fairy  folk  will  ride. 
And  they  that  wad  their  true-love  win, 
At  Miles  Cross  they  maun  bide." 

Ballad  of  Tarn,  Lm, 

and  in  the  Highlands  whoever  took  a  three- 
legged  stool  to  where  three  crossroads  met, 
and  sat  upon  it  at  midnight,  would  hear  the 
names  of  those  who  were  to  die  in  a  year. 
He  might  bring  with  him  articles  of  dress, 
and  as  each  name  was  pronounced  throw  one 
garment  to  the  fairies.  They  would  be  so 
pleased  by  this  gift  that  they  would  repeal 
the  sentence  of  death. 

Even  people  who  seemed  to  be  like  their 
neighbors  every  day  could  for  this  night  fly 


66    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

away  and  join  the  other  beings  in  their 
revels. 

"  This  is  the  nicht  o'  Hallowe'en 
When  a'  the  witchie  may  be  seen ; 
Some  o'  them  black,  some  o'  them  green, 
Some  o'  them  Uke  a  tm'key  bean." 

A  witches*  party  was  conducted  in  this  way. 
The  wretched  women  who  had  sold  their 
souls  to  the  Devil,  left  a  stick  in  bed  which 
by  evil  means  was  made  to  have  their  like- 
ness, and,  anointed  with  the  fat  of  murdered 
babies  flew  off  up  the  chimney  on  a  broom- 
stick with  cats  attendant.  Burns  tells  the 
story  of  a  company  of  witches  pulling  ragwort 
by  the  roadside,  getting  each  astride  her  rag- 
wort with  the  summons  "  Up  horsie  I "  and 
flying  away. 

"  The  hag  is  astride 

This  night  for  a  ride, 
The  devils  and  she  together  : 

Through  thick  and  through  thin, 

l^ow  out  and  now  in. 
Though  ne'er  so  foul  be  the  weather. 


IN  SCOTLAND  67 

"  A  thorn  or  a  burr 

She  takes  for  a  spur, 
"With  a  lash  of  the  bramble  she  rides  now. 

Through  brake  and  through  briers, 

O'er  ditches  and  mires, 
She  follows  the  spirit  that  guides  now." 

Hebeick  :  The  Hag. 

The  meeting-place  was  arranged  by  the  Devil, 
who  sometimes  rode  there  on  a  goat.  At 
their  supper  no  bread  or  salt  was  eaten ;  they 
drank  out  of  horses'  skulls,  and  danced,  some- 
times back  to  back,  sometimes  from  west  to 
east,  for  the  dances  at  the  ancient  Baal  festi- 
vals were  from  east  to  west,  and  it  was  evil 
and  ill-omened  to  move  the  other  way.  For 
this  dance  the  Devil  played  a  bag-pipe  made 
of  a  hen's  skull  and  cats*  tails. 

''  There  sat  Auld  Nick,  in  shape  o'  beast ; 
A  tousie  tyke,  black,  grim,  and  large, 
To  gie  them  music  was  his  charge  : 
He  screw'd  the  pipes  and  gart  them  skirl, 
Till  roof  and  rafters  a'  did  dirl."  * 

Burns  :  Tam  0'  SJmntero 

»Eing. 


68    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

The  light  for  the  revelry  came  from  a  torch 
flaring  between  the  horns  of  the  Devil's  steed, 
the  goat,  and  at  the  close  the  ashes  were 
divided  for  the  witches  to  use  in  incantations. 
People  imagined  that  cats  who  had  been  up 
all  night  on  Hallowe'en  were  tired  out  the 
next  morning. 

Tam  o'  Shanter  who  was  watching  such  a 
dance 

"  By  Alio  way's  auld  haunted  kirk  '* 

in  Ayrshire,  could  not  resist  calling  out  at  the 
antics  of  a  neighbor  whom  he  recognized,  and 
was  pursued  by  the  witches.  He  urged  his 
horse  to  top-speed, 

"  Now  do  thy  speedy  utmost,  Meg, 
And  win  the  key-stane  of  the  brig ; 
There  at  them  thou  thy  tail  may  toss, 
A  running  stream  they  dare  na  cross ! " 

Burns  :  Tam  o'  Shanter, 

but  poor  Meg  had  no  tail  thereafter  to  toss  at 
them,  for  though  she  saved  her  rider,  she  was 
only  her  tail's  length  beyond  the  middle  of 


IN  SCOTLAND  69 

the  bridge  when  the  foremost  witch  grasped 
it  and  seared  it  to  a  stub. 

Such  witches  might  be  questioned  about 
the  past  or  future. 

"  He  that  dare  sit  on  St.  Swithin's  Chair, 
When  the  Night-Hag  wings  the  troubled  air, 
Questions  three,  when  he  speaks  the  spell, 
He  may  ask,  and  she  must  tell." 

Scott  :  St.  Svnthin's  Chair. 

Children  make  of  themselves  bogies  on  this 
evening,  carrying  the  largest  turnips  they  can 
save  from  harvest,  hollowed  out  and  carved 
into  the  likeness  of  a  fearsome  face,  with  teeth 
and  forehead  blacked,  and  lighted  by  a  candle 
fastened  inside. 

If  the  spirit  of  a  person  simply  appears 
without  being  summoned,  and  the  person  is 
still  alive,  it  means  that  he  is  in  danger.  If 
he  comes  toward  the  one  to  whom  he  appears 
the  danger  is  over.  If  he  seems  to  go  away, 
he  is  dying. 

An  apparition  from  the  future  especially  is 
sought  on  Hallowe'en.     It  is  a  famous  time 


JO    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

for  divination  in  love  affairs.  A  typical 
eighteenth  century  party  in  western  Scotland 
is  described  by  Robert  Burns. 

Cabbages  are  important  in  Scotch  supersti- 
tion. Children  believe  that  if  they  pile 
cabbage-stalks  round  the  doors  and  windows 
of  the  house,  the  fairies  will  bring  them  a 
new  brother  or  sister. 

"  And  often  when  in  his  old-fashioned  way 
He  questioned  me,     .     .     . 
Who  made  the  stars  ?  and  if  within  his  hand 
He  caught  and  held  one,  would  his  fingers  bum  ? 
If  I,  the  gray-haired  dominie,  was  dug 
From  out  a  cabbage-garden  such  as  he 

Was  found  in " 

BucHiiNAN :  Willie  Baird. 

Kale-pulling  came  first  on  the  program  in 
Burns's  Hallowe'en.  Just  the  single  and  un- 
engaged went  out  hand  in  hand  blindfolded 
to  the  cabbage-garden.  They  pulled  the  first 
stalk  they  came  upon,  brought  it  back  to  the 
house,  and  were  unbandaged.  The  size  and 
shape  of  the  stalk  indicated  the  appearance 
of  the  future  husband  or  wife. 


IN  SCOTLAND  71 

"  Maybe  you  would  rather  not  pull  a  stalk 
that  was  tall  and  straight  and  strong — that 
would  mean  Alastair  ?  Maybe  you  would 
rather  find  you  had  got  hold  of  a  withered  old 
stump  with  a  lot  of  earth  at  the  root — a  decrepit 
old  man  with  plenty  of  money  in  the  bank  ?  Or 
maybe  you  are  wishing  for  one  that  is  slim  and 
supple  and  not  so  tall — for  one  that  might  mean 
Johnnie  Semple." 

Black  :  Hallowe'en  Wraith. 

A  close  white  head  meant  an  old  husband,  an 
open  green  head  a  young  one.  His  disposi- 
tion would  be  like  the  taste  of  the  stem.  To 
determine  his  name,  the  stalks  were  hung 
over  the  door,  and  the  number  of  one's  stalk 
in  the  row  noted.  If  Jessie  put  hers  up  third 
from  the  beginning,  and  the  third  man  who 
passed  through  the  doorway  under  it  was 
named  Alan,  her  husband's  first  name  would 
be  Alan.  This  is  practised  only  a  little  now 
among  farmers.  It  has  special  virtue  if  the 
cabbage  has  been  stolen  from  the  garden  of  an 
unmarried  person. 

Sometimes  the  pith  of  a  cabbage-stalk  was 
pushed  out,  the  hole  filled  with  tow,  which 


72    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

was  set  afire  and  blown  through  keyholes  on 
Hallowe'en. 

"  Their  runts  clean  through  and  through  were 
bored, 
And  stuffed  with  raiveUns  fou, 
And  like  a  chimley  when  on  fire 
Each  could  the  reek  outspue. 

"  Jock  through  the  key-hole  sent  a  clond 
That  reached  across  the  house, 
While  in  below  the  door  reek  rushed 
Like  water  through  a  sluice." 

Dick  :  Splores  of  a  Hallowe'en, 

Cabbage-broth  was  a  regular  dish  at  the 
Hallowe'en  feast.  Mashed  potatoes,  as  in  Ire- 
land, or  a  dish  of  meal  and  milk  holds  sym- 
bolic objects — a  ring,  a  thimble,  and  a  coin. 
In  the  cake  are  baked  a  ring  and  a  key.  The 
ring  signifies  to  the  possessor  marriage,  and 
the  key  a  journey. 

Apple-ducking  is  still  a  universal  custom 
in  Scotland.  A  sixpence  is  sometimes  dropped 
into  the  tub  or  stuck  into  an  apple  to  make 
the  reward  greater.  The  contestants  must 
keep  their  hands  behind  their  backs. 


IN  SCOTLAND  73 

Nuts  are  put  before  the  fire  in  pairs,  instead 
of  by  threes  as  in  Ireland,  and  named  for  a  lover 
and  his  lass.  If  they  burn  to  ashes  together, 
a  long  happy  married  life  is  destined  for  the 
lovers.  If  they  crackle  or  start  away  from 
each  other,  dissension  and  separation  are 
ahead. 

"  Jean  slips  in  twa,  wi'  tentie '  e'e ; 
Wha  't  was,  she  wadna  tell ; 
But  this  is  Jock^  an'  this  is  me^ 

She  says  in  to  hersel ; 
He  bleez'd  owre  her,  an'  she  owre  him, 

As  they  wad  never  mair  part ; 
Till  fuff !  he  started  up  the  lum,^ 
And  Jean  had  e'en  a  sair  heart 

To  see't  that  night." 

BuBNS  :  HaUowe'en, 

Three  "luggies,"  bowls  with  handles  like 
the  Druid  lamps,  were  filled,  one  with  clean, 
one  with  dirty  water,  and  one  left  empty. 
The  person  wishing  to  know  his  fate  in  mar- 
riage was  blindfolded,  turned  about  thrice, 
and  put  down  his  left  hand.     If  he  dipped  it 

*  Caretnl.  '  Chimney. 


74    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

into  the  clean  water,  he  would  marry  a 
maiden  ;  if  into  the  dirty,  a  widow ;  if  into 
the  empty  dish,  not  at  all.  He  tried  until  he 
got  the  same  result  twice.  The  dishes  were 
changed  about  each  time. 

This  spell  still  remains,  as  does  that  of 
hemp-seed  sowing.  One  goes  out  alone  with 
a  handful  of  hemp-seed,  sows  it  across  ridges 
of  ploughed  land,  and  harrows  it  with  any- 
thing convenient,  perhaps  with  a  broom. 
Having  said : 

"  Hemp-seed,  I  saw  thee, 
An'  her  that  is  to  be  ray  lass 

.  Come  after  me  an'  draw  thee " 


Burns  :  Hallowe'en. 

he  looks  behind  him  to  see  his  sweetheart 
gathering  hemp.  This  should  be  tried  just  at 
midnight  with  the  moon  behind. 

"  At  even  o'  Hallowmas  no  sleep  I  sought, 
But  to  the  field  a  bag  of  hemp-seed  brought. 
I  scattered  round  the  seed  on  every  side, 
And  three  times  three  in  trembling  accents 
cried, 


IN  SCOTLAND  -js 

*  This  hemp-seed  with  my  virgin  hand  I  sow, 

Who  shall  my  true-love  be,  the  crop  shalil 

mow.' " 

Gay  :  FastoraU. 

A  spell  that  has  been  discontinued  is 
throwing  the  clue  of  blue  yarn  into  the  kiln- 
pot,  instead  of  out  of  the  window,  as  in  Ire- 
land. As  it  is  wound  backward,  something 
holds  it.  The  winder  must  ask,  "  Wha 
bauds?  "  to  hear  the  name  of  her  future  sweet- 
heart. 

"  An'  ay  she  win't,  an'  ay  she  swat  — 
I  wat  she  made  nae  jaukin ; 
Till  something  held  within  the  pat, 
Guid  Lord  !  but  she  was  quakin  ! 
But  whether  't  was  the  Deil  himsel, 

Or  whether  't  was  a  bauk-en' ' 
Or  whether  it  was  Andrew  Bell, 
She  did  na  wait  on  talkin 
To  speir  ^  that  night." 

BuENS  :  RaUowe^en. 

Another  spell  not  commonly  tried  now  is 
winnowing  three  measures  of  imaginary  corn, 
as   one  stands  in  the  barn  alone  with  both 

*  Cmps-beam.  '  Ask. 


76    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

doors  open  to  let  the  spirits  that  come  in  go 
out  again  freely.  As  one  finishes  the  motions, 
the  apparition  of  the  future  husband  will 
come  in  at  one  door  and  pass  out  at  the  other. 

"  *  I  had  not  winnowed  the  last  weight  clean 

ont,  and  the  moon  was  shining  bright  upon  the 

floor,  when  in  stalked  the  presence  of  my  dear 

Simon  Glendinning,  that  is  now  happy.     I  never 

saw  him  plainer  in  my  Ufe  than  I  did  that 

moment ;  he  held  up  an  arrow  as  he  passed  me, 

and  I  swarf' d  awa'   wi'  fright.     .     .     .     But 

mark  the  end  o'  't,  Tibb :  we  were  married,  and 

the  grey-goose  wing   was  the  death   o'    him 

after  a'.' " 

Scott  :   The  MonaMery. 

At  times  other  prophetic  appearances  were 
seen. 

"  Just  as  she  was  at  the  wark,  what  does  she 
see  in  the  moonhcht  but  her  ain  coffin  moving 
between  the  doors  instead  of  the  likeness  of  a 
gudeman !  and  as  sure's  death  she  was  in  her 
coffin  before  the  same  time  next  year." 

Anon  :  Tale  of  Hallowe'en. 

Formerly  a  stack  of  beans,  oats,  or  barley 


IN  SCOTLAND  jj 

was  measured  round  with  the  arms  against 
the  sun.  At  the  end  of  the  third  time  the 
arms  would  enclose  the  vision  of  the  future 
husband  or  wife. 

Kale-pulling,  apple-snapping,  and  lead- 
melting  (see  Ireland)  are  social  rites,  but 
many  were  to  be  tried  alone  and  in  secret.  A 
Highland  divination  was  tried  with  a  shoe, 
held  by  the  tip,  and  thrown  over  the  house. 
The  person  will  journey  in  the  direction  the 
toe  points  out.  If  it  falls  sole  up,  it  means 
bad  luck. 

Girls  would  pull  a  straw  each  out  of  a 
thatch  in  Broadsea,  and  would  take  it  to  an 
old  woman  in  Fraserburgh.  The  seeress 
would  break  the  straw  and  find  within  it  a 
hair  the  color  of  the  lover's- to-be.  Blind- 
folded they  plucked  heads  of  oats,  and  counted 
the  number  of  grains  to  find  out  how  many 
children  they  would  have.  If  the  tip  was 
perfect,  not  broken  or  gone,  they  would  be 
married  honorably. 

Another  way  of  determining  the  number 
of  children  was  to  drop  the  white  of  an  egg 


78    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

into  a  glass  of  water.  The  number  of  divi- 
sions was  the  number  sought.  White  of  egg 
is  held  with  water  in  the  mouth,  like  the 
grains  of  oats  in  Ireland,  while  one  takes  a 
walk  to  hear  mentioned  the  name  of  his  fu- 
ture wife.  Names  are  written  on  papers,  and 
laid  upon  the  chimney-piece.  Fate  guides 
the  hand  of  a  blindfolded  man  to  the  slip 
which  bears  his  sweetheart's  name. 

A  Hallowe'en  mirror  is  made  by  the  rays 
of  the  moon  shining  into  a  looking-glass.  If 
a  girl  goes  secretly  into  a  room  at  midnight 
between  October  and  November,  sits  down  at 
the  mirror,  and  cuts  an  apple  into  nine  slices, 
holding  each  on  the  point  of  a  knife  before 
she  eats  it,  she  may  see  in  the  moonlit  glass 
the  image  of  her  lover  looking  over  her  left 
shoulder,  and  asking  for  the  last  piece  of 
apple. 

The  wetting  of  the  sark-sleeve  in  a  south- 
running  burn  where  "  three  lairds'  lands 
meet,"  and  carrying  it  home  to  dry  before  the 
fire,  was  really  a  Scotch  custom,  but  has  al- 
ready been  described  in  Ireland. 


IN  SCOTLAND  79 

"  The  last  Hallowe'en  I  was  waukin ' 
My  droukit  ^  sark-sleeve,  as  ye  kin  — 
His  likeness  came  up  the  house  staukin, 
And  the  very  grey  breeks  o'  Tarn  Glen ! " 

BUBNS :  Tarn  Glen. 

Just  before  breaking  up,  the  crowd  of  young 
people  partook  of  sowens,  oatmeal  porridge 
cakes  with  butter,  and  strunt,  a  liquor,  as  they 
hoped  for  good  luck  throughout  the  year. 

The  Hebrides,  Scottish  islands  off  the  west- 
ern coast,  have  Hallowe'en  traditions  of  their 
own,  as  well  as  many  borrowed  from  Ireland 
and  Scotland.  Barra,  isolated  near  the  end 
of  the  island  chain,  still  celebrates  the  Celtic 
days,  Beltaine  and  November  Eve. 

In  the  Hebrides  is  the  Irish  custom  of  eat- 
ing on  Hallowe'en  a  cake  of  meal  and  salt,  or 
a  salt  herringj,  bones  and  all,  to  dream  of  some 
one  bringing  a  drink  of  water.  Not  a  word 
must  be  spoken,  nor  a  drop  of  water  drunk 
till  the  dream  comes. 

In  St.  Kilda  a  large  triangular  cake  is  baked 
which  must  be  all  eaten  up  before  morning. 

*  Watching.  *  Drenched. 


8o     THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

A  curious  custom  that  prevailed  in  the 
island  of  Lewis  in  the  eighteenth  century  was 
the  worship  of  Shony,  a  sea-god  with  a  Norse 
name.  His  ceremonies  were  similar  to  those 
paid  to  Saman  in  Ireland,  but  more  pic- 
turesque. Ale  was  brewed  at  church  from 
malt  brought  collectively  by  the  people.  One 
took  a  cupful  in  his  hand,  and  waded  out 
into  the  sea  up  to  his  waist,  saying  as  he 
poured  it  out :  "  Shony,  1  give  you  this  cup 
of  ale,  hoping  that  you'll  be  so  kind  as  to 
send  us  plenty  of  sea-ware,  for  enriching  our 
ground  the  ensuing  year."  The  party  re- 
turned to  the  church,  waited  for  a  given 
signal  when  a  candle  burning  on  the  altar 
was  blown  out.  Then  they  went  out  into  the 
fields,  and  drank  ale  with  dance  and  song. 

The  "  dumb  cake "  originated  in  Lewis. 
Girls  were  each  apportioned  a  small  piece  of 
dough,  mixed  with  any  but  spring  water. 
They  kneaded  it  with  their  left  thumbs, 
in  silence.  Before  midnight  they  pricked 
initials  on  them  with  a  new  pin,  and  put 
them  by  the  fire  to  bake.     The  girls  with- 


IN  SCOTLAND  8i 

drew  to  the  farther  end  of  the  room,  still  in 
silence.  At  midnight  each  lover  was  ex- 
pected to  enter  and  lay  his  hand  on  the  cake 
marked  with  his  initials. 

In  South  Uist  and  Eriskay  on  Hallowe'en 
fairies  are  out,  a  source  of  terror  to  those  they 
meet. 

"  Hallowe'en  will  come,  will  come, 
Witchcraft  will  be  set  a-going, 
Fairies  will  be  at  full  speed, 
Running  in  every  pass. 
Avoid  the  road,  children,  children." 

But  for  the  most  part  this  belief  has  died  out 
on  Scottish  land,  except  near  the  Border,  and 
Hallowe'en  is  celebrated  only  by  stories  and 
jokes  and  games,  songs  and  dances. 


CHAPTER  IX 
IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN 

Man  especially  has  a  treasury  of  fairy 
tradition,  Celtic  and  Norse  combined.  Manx 
fairies  too  dwell  in  the  middle  world,  since 
they  are  fit  for  neither  heaven  nor  hell.  Even 
now  Manx  people  think  they  see  circles  of 
light  in  the  late  October  midnight,  and  little 
folk  dancing  within. 

Longest  of  all  in  Man  was  Sauin  (Samhain) 
considered  New  Year's  Day.  According  to 
the  old  style  of  reckoning  time  it  came  on 
November  12. 

"  To-night  is  New  Year's  night. 

Hogunnaa ! " 

Mummers'  Song. 

As  in  Scotland  the  servants'  year  ends  with 

October. 

New  Year   tests  for  finding  out  the  future 

were   tried   on   Sauin.     To   hear   her   sweet- 

82 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN      83 

heart's  name  a  girl  took  a  mouthful  of  water 
and  two  handfuls  of  salt,  and  sat  down  at  a 
door.  The  first  name  she  heard  mentioned 
was  the  wished-for  one.  The  three  dishes 
proclaimed  the  fate  of  the  blindfolded  seeker 
as  in  Scotland.  Each  was  blindfolded  and 
touched  one  of  several  significant  objects — 
meal  for  prosperity,  earth  for  death,  a  net  for 
tangled  fortunes. 

Before  retiring  each  filled  a  thimble  with 
salt,  and  emptied  it  out  in  a  little  mound  on 
a  plate,  remembering  his  own.  If  any  heap 
were  found  fallen  over  by  morning,  the  per- 
son it  represented  was  destined  to  die  in  a 
year.  The  Manx  looked  for  prints  in  the 
smooth-strewn  ashes  on  the  hearth,  as  the 
Scotch  did,  and  gave  the  same  interpretation. 

There  had  been  Christian  churches  in 
Britain  as  early  as  300  a.  d.,  and  Christian 
missionaries,  St.  Ninian,  Pelagius,  and  St. 
Patrick,  were  active  in  the  next  century,  and 
in  the  course  of  time  St.  Augustine.  Still  the 
old  superstitions  persisted,  as  they  always  do 
when  they  have  grown  up  with  the  people. 


84    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

King  Arthur,  who  was  believed  to  have 
reigned  in  the  fifth  century,  may  be  a  per- 
sonification of  the  sun-god.  He  comes  from 
the  Otherworld,  his  magic  sword  Excalibur  is 
brought  thence  to  him,  he  fights  twelve  bat- 
tles, in  number  like  the  mouths,  and  is 
wounded  to  death  by  evil  Modred,  once  his 
own  knight.  He  passes  in  a  boat,  attended 
by  his  fairy  sister  and  two  other  queens, 

" '  To  the  island- valley  of  Avilion ; 

Where  falls  not  hail,  or  rain,  or  any  snow, 
Nor  ever  wind  blows  loudly ;  but  it  lies 
Deep-meadowed,  happy,  fair  with  orchard-lawns 
And    bowery  hollows    crown'd  with  summer 

sea ' " 

Tennyson  :  Passing  of  Arthur. 

The  hope  of  being  healed  there  is  like  that 
given  to  Cuchulain  (q.  v.),  to  persuade  him  to 
visit  the  fairy  kingdom.  Arthur  was  expected 
to  come  again  sometime,  as  the  sun  renews 
his  course.  As  he  disappeared  from  the  sight 
of  Bedivere,  the  last  of  his  knights, 

"  The  new  sun  rose  bringing  the  new  year." 

Ibid, 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN       85 

Avilion  means  "  apple-island."  It  was  like 
the  Hesperides  of  Greek  mythology,  the 
western  islands  where  grew  the  golden  apples 
of  immortality. 

In  Cornwall  after  the  sixth  century,  the 
sun-god  became  St.  Michael,  and  the  eastern 
point  where  he  appeared  St.  Michael's  seat. 

"  Where  the  great  vision  of  the  guarded  mount 
Looks  toward  Namancos,  and  Bayona's  hold." 

Milton:  Lyddas. 

As  fruit  to  Pomona,  so  berries  were  devoted 
to  fairies.  They  would  not  let  any  one  cut  a 
blackthorn  shoot  on  Hallowe'en.  In  Corn- 
wall sloes  and  blackberries  were  considered 
unfit  to  eat  after  the  fairies  had  passed  by,  be- 
cause all  the  goodness  was  extracted.  So  they 
were  eaten  to  heart's  content  on  October  31st, 
and  avoided  thereafter.  Hazels,  because  they 
were  thought  to  contain  wisdom  and  knowl- 
edge, were  also  sacred. 

Besides  leaving  berries  for  the  "^Little 
People,"  food  was  set  out  for  them  on  Hal- 
lowe'en, and   on   other  occasions.     They  re- 


86    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

warded  this  hospitality  by  doing  an  extra- 
ordinary amount  of  work. 

"  —  how  the  drudging  goblin  sweat 
To  earn  his  cream-bowl  duly  set, 
When  in  one  night,  ere  glimpse  of  morn, 
His  shadowy  flail  hath  threshed  the  com 
That  ten  day-laborers  could  not  end. 
Then  lies  him  down  the  lubbar  fiend, 
And  stretcht  out  all  the  chimney's  length 
Basks  at  the  fire  his  hairy  strength." 

Milton:  V Allegro. 

Such  sprites  did  not  scruple  to  pull  away 
the  chair  as  one  was  about  to  sit  down,  to 
pinch,  or  even  to  steal  children  and  leave 
changelings  in  their  places.  The  first  hint 
of  dawn  drove  them  back  to  their  haunts. 

"  "When  larks  'gin  sing, 
Away  we  fling ; 

And  babes  new  borne  steal  as  we  go, 
And  elfe  in  bed 
We  leave  instead. 

And  wend  us  laughing,  ho,  ho,  ho  !  " 

JONSON  :  Robin  Goodfellow. 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN       87 

Soulless  and  without  gratitude  or  memory 
spirits  of  the  air  may  be,  like  Ariel  in  The 
Tempest.  He,  like  the  fairy  harpers  of  Ire- 
land, puts  men  to  sleep  with  his  music. 

"  Sebastian.  What,  art  thou  waking  ? 

Antonio.      Do  you  not  hear  me  speak  ? 
Sebastian.  I  do ;  and,  surely, 

It  is  a  sleepy  language  ;  and  thou  speak'st 
Out  of  thy  sleep :  What  is  it  thou  didst  say  ? 
This  is  a  strange  repose,  to  be  asleep 
With  eyes  wide  open ;  standing,  speaking, 

moving. 
And  yet  so  fast  asleep." 

Shakspebe  :  The  Tempest. 

The  people  of  England,  in  common  with 
those  who  lived  in  the  other  countries  of  Great 
Britain  and  in  Europe,  dreaded  the  coming 
of  winter  not  only  on  account  of  the  cold  and 
loneliness,  but  because  they  believed  that  at 
this  time  the  powers  of  evil  were  abroad  and 
ascendant.  This  belief  harked  back  to  the 
old  idea  that  the  sun  had  been  vanquished  by 
his  enemies  in  the  late  autumn.  It  was  to 
forget  the  fearful  influences  about  them  that 


88    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

the  English  kept  festival  so  much  in  the 
winter-time.  The  Lords  of  Misrule,  leaders 
of  the  revelry,  "  beginning  their  rule  on  All 
Hallow  Eve,  continued  the  same  till  the  mor- 
row after  the  Feast  of  the  Purification,  com- 
monlie  called  Candelmas  day :  In  all  of 
which  space  there  were  fine  and  subtle  dis- 
guisinges,  Maskes,  and  Mummeries."  This 
was  written  of  King  Henry  IV's  court  at 
Eltham,  in  1401,  and  is  true  of  centuries  be- 
fore and  after.  They  gathered  about  the  fire 
and  made  merry  while  the  October  tempests 
whirled  the  leaves  outside,  and  shrieked  round 
the  house  like  ghosts  and  demons  on  a  mad 
carousal. 

"  The  autumn  wind — oh  hear  it  howl : 
Without — October's  tempests  scowl, 
As  he  troops  away  on  the  raving  wind ! 
And  leaveth  dry  leaves  in  his  path  behind. 


"  'T  is  the  night— the  night 
Of  the  graves'  delight, 
And  the  warlock '  are  at  their  play  I 
'Devils. 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN       89 

Ye  think  that  without 
The  wild  winds  shout, 
But  no,  it  is  they — it  is  they ! " 

OoxE  :  HaJtlowt^en. 

Witchcraft — the  origin  of  which  will  be 
traced  farther  on — had  a  strong  following  in 
England.  The  three  witches  in  Macbeth  are 
really  fates  who  foretell  the  future,  but  they 
have  a  kettle  in  which  they  boil 

"  Fillet  of  a  fenny  snake, 
*  *  *  *  * 

Eye  of  newt,  and  toe  of  frog, 
Wool  of  bat,  and  tongue  of  dog. 
Adder's  fork,  and  blind  worm's  sting, 
Lizard's  leg,  and  owlet's  wing, 

For  a  charm  of  powerful  trouble " 

Shakspeee  :  Macbeth. 

They  connect  themselves  thereby  with  those 
evil  creatures  who  pursued  Tarn  o'  Shanter, 
and  were  servants  of  the  Devil.  In  1892  in 
Lincolnshire,  people  believed  that  if  they 
looked  in  through  the  church  door  on  Hal- 
lowe'en they  would  see  the  Devil  preaching 


90    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

his  doctrines  from  the  pulpit,  and  inscribing 
the  names  of  new  witches  in  his  book. 

The  Spectre  Huntsman,  known  in  Windsor 
Forest  as  Heme  the  Hunter,  and  in  Todmor- 
den  as  Gabriel  Ratchets,  was  the  spirit  of  an 
ungodly  hunter  who  for  his  crimes  was  con- 
demned to  lead  the  chase  till  the  Judgment 
Day.  In  a  storm  on  Hallowe'en  is  heard  the 
belling  of  his  hounds. 

"  Still,  still  shall  last  the  dreadful  chase 

Till  time  itself  shall  have  an  end ; 
By  day  they  scour  earth's  cavern'd  space, 
At  midnight's  witching  hour,  ascend. 

**  This  is  the  horn,  the  hound,  and  horse. 
That  oft  the  lated  peasant  hears : 
Appall'd,  he  signs  the  frequent  cross. 
When  the  wild  din  invades  his  ears." 

Scott  :  Wild  Huntsman. 

In  the  north  of  England  Hallowe'en  was 
called  "nut-crack"  and  "snap-apple  night." 
It  was  celebrated  by  "  young  people  and  sweet- 
hearts." 

A  variation  of   the  nut  test  is,   naming 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN       91 

two  for  two  lovers  before  they  are  put  be- 
fore the  fire  to  roast.  The  unfaithful  lover's 
nut  cracks  and  jumps  away,  the  loyal  burns 
with  a  steady  ardent  flame  to  ashes. 

"  Two  hazel-nuts  I  threw  into  the  flame, 
And  to  each  nut  I  gave  a  sweetheart's  name. 
This  with  the  loudest  bounce  me  sore  amaz'd, 
That  in  a  flame  of  brightest  color  blaz'd ; 
As  blaz'd  the  nut,  so  may  thy  passion  grow. 
For  't  was  thy  nut  that  did  so  brightly  glow." 

Gay:  The  Spell. 

If  they  jump  toward  each  other,  they  will  be 
rivals.  If  one  of  the  nuts  has  been  named  for 
the  girl  and  burns  quietly  with  a  lover's  nut, 
they  will  live  happily  together.  If  they  are 
restless,  there  is  trouble  ahead. 

"  These  glowing  nuts  are  emblems  true 
Of  what  in  human  life  we  view ; 
The  ill-matched  couple  fret  and  fume, 
And  thus  in  strife  themselves  consume, 
Or  from  each  other  wildly  start 
And  with  a  noise  forever  part. 
But  see  the  happy,  happy  pair 
Of  genuine  love  and  truth  sincere ; 


92    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

With  mutual  fondness,  while  they  bum 
Still  to  each  other  kindly  turn : 
And  as  the  vital  sparks  decay, 
Together  gently  sink  away. 
Till,  life's  fierce  ordeal  being  paat, 
Their  mingled  ashes  rest  at  last." 

Gkaydon  :  On  Nuts  Burning,  AllhaUows  Eve. 

Sometimes  peas  on  a  hot  shovel  are  used  in- 
stead. 

Down  the  centuries  from  the  Druid  tree- 
worship  comes  the  spell  of  the  walnut-tree. 
It  is  circled  thrice,  with  the  invocation  :  "  Let 
her  that  is  to  be  my  true-love  bring  me  some 
walnuts ; "  and  directly  a  spirit  will  be  seen 
in  the  tree  gathering  nuts. 

"  Last  Hallow  Eve  I  sought  a  walnut- tree, 
In  hope  my  true  Love's  face  that  I  might  see  ; 
Three  times  I  called,  three  times  I  walked  apace ; 
Then  in  the  tree  I  saw  my  true  Love's  face," 

Gay  :  Pastorals. 

The  seeds  of  apples  were  used  in  many  trials. 
Two  stuck  on  cheeks  or  eyelids  indicated  by 
the  time  they  clung  the  faithfulness  of  the 
friends  named  for  them. 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN       93 

"  See,  from  the  core  two  kernels  brown  I  take ; 
This  on  my  cheek  for  Lubberkin  is  worn, 
And  Booby  Clod  on  t'other  side  is  borne ; 
But  Booby  Clod  soon  drops  upon  the  ground, 
A  certain  token  tha^t  his  love's  unsound ; 
"While  Lubberkin  sticks  firmly  to  the  last. 
Oh !  were  his  lips  to  mine  but  joined  so  fast." 

Gay:  Pastorals. 

In  a  tub  float  stemless  apples,  to  be  seized 
by  the  teeth  of  him  desirous  of  having  his 
love  returned.  If  he  is  successful  in  bringing 
up  the  apple,  his  love-affair  will  end  happily. 

"  The  rosy  apple's  bobbing 
Upon  the  mimic  sea  — 
'T  is  tricksy  and  elusive, 
And  glides  away  from  me. 

**One  moment  it  is  dreaming 
Beneath  the  candle's  glare, 
Then  over  wave  and  eddy 
It  glances  here  and  there. 

**  And  when  at  last  I  capture 
The  prize  with  joy  aglow, 
I  sigh,  may  I  this  sunshine 
Of  golden  rapture  know 


94    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  When  I  essay  to  gather 
In  all  her  witchery 
Love's  sweetest  rosy  apple 
On  Love's  uncertain  sea." 

MUNKITTBICK :  Hullow^en  Wish. 

An  apple  is  peeled  all  in  one  piece,  and  the 
paring  swung  three  times  round  the  head  and 
dropped  behind  the  left  shoulder.  If  it  does 
not  break,  and  is  looked  at  over  the  shoulder 
it  forms  the  initial  of  the  true  sweetheart's 
name 

"  I  pare  this  pippin  round  and  round  again, 
My  sweetheart's  name  to  flourish  on  the  plain : 
I  fling  the  unbroken  paring  o'er  my  head. 
A  perfect '  L '  upon  the  ground  is  read." 

Gay:  Pastorals. 

In  the  north  of  England  was  a  unique 
custom,  "  the  scadding  of  peas."  A  pea-pod 
was  slit,  a  bean  pushed  inside,  and  the  open- 
ing closed  again.  The  full  pods  were  boiled, 
and  apportioned  to  be  shelled  and  the  peas 
eaten  with  butter  and  salt.  The  one  finding 
the  bean  on  his  plate  would  be  married  first. 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN      95 

Gay  records  another  test  with  peas  which  is 
like  the  final  trial  made  with  kale-stalks. 

"  As  peascods  once  I  plucked  I  chanced  to  see 
One  that  was  closely  filled  with  three  times  three ; 
Which  when  I  crop'd,  I  safely  home  convey'd, 
And  o'er  the  door  the  spell  in  secret  laid  ;  — 
The  latch  moved  up,  when  who  should  first  come 

in, 
But  in  his  proper  person — Lubberkin." 

Gay:  PaMordla. 

Candles,  relics  of  the  sacred  fire,  play  an 
important  part  everywhere  on  Hallowe'en. 
In  England  too  the  lighted  candle  and  the 
apple  were  fastened  to  the  stick,  and  as  it 
whirled,  each  person  in  turn  sprang  up  and 
tried  to  bite  the  apple. 

"  Or  catch  th'  elusive  apple  with  a  bound. 
As  with  the  taper  it  flew  whizzing  round." 

This  was  a  rough  game,  more  suited  to  boys' 
frolic  than  the  ghostly  divinations  that  pre- 
ceded it.  Those  with  energy  to  spare  found 
material  to  exercise  it  on.  In  an  old  book 
there  is  a  picture  of  a  youth  sitting  on  a  stick 


96    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

placed  across  two  stools.  On  one  end  of  the 
stick  is  a  lighted  candle  from  which  he  is 
trying  to  light  another  in  his  hand.  Beneath 
is  a  tub  of  water  to  receive  him  if  he  over- 
balances sideways.  These  games  grew  later 
into  practical  jokes. 

The  use  of  a  goblet  may  perhaps  come  from 
the  story  of  "  The  Luck  of  Edenhall,"  a  glass 
stolen  from  the  fairies,  and  holding  ruin  for 
the  House  by  whom  it  was  stolen,  if  it  should 
ever  be  broken.  With  ring  and  goblet  this 
charm  was  tried :  the  ring,  symbol  of  mar- 
riage, was  suspended  by  a  hair  within  a  glass, 
and  a  name  spelled  out  by  beginning  the 
alphabet  over  each  time  the  ring  struck  the 
glass. 

When  tired  of  activity  and  noise,  the  party 
gathered  about  a  story-teller,  or  passed  a 
bundle  of  fagots  from  hand  to  hand,  each 
selecting  one  and  reciting  an  installment  of 
the  tale  till  his  stick  burned  to  ashes. 

"  I  tell  ye  the  story  this  chill  Hallowe'en, 
For  it  suiteth  the  spirit-eve." 

CoxE :  Halloween. 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN      97 

To  induce  prophetic  dreams  the  wood-and- 
water  test  was  tried  in  England  also. 

"  Last  Hallow  Eve  I  looked  my  love  to  see, 
And  tried  a  spell  to  call  her  up  to  me. 
With  wood  and  water  standing  by  my  side 
I  dreamed  a  dream,  and  saw  my  own  sweet 
bride." 

Gay  :  Fastorals. 

Though  Hallowe'en  is  decidedly  a  country 
festival,  in  the  seventeenth  century  young 
gentlemen  in  London  chose  a  Master  of  the 
Revels,  and  held  masques  and  dances  with 
their  friends  on  this  night. 

In  central  and  southern  England  the 
ecclesiastical  side  of  Hallowtide  is  stressed. 

Bread  or  cake  has  till  recently  (1898)  been 
as  much  a  part  of  Hallowe'en  preparations  as 
plum  pudding  at  Christmas.  Probably  this 
originated  from  an  autumn  baking  of  bread 
from  the  new  grain.  In  Yorkshire  each  per- 
son gets  a  triangular  seed-cake,  and  the  even- 
ing is  called  "  cake  night." 


98    THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  Wife,  some  time  this  weeke,  if  the  wether  hold 
cleere, 
An  end  of  wheat-sowing  we  make  for  this  yeare. 
Remember  you,  therefore,  though  I  do  it  not, 
The  seed-cake,  the  Pasties,  and  Furmentie-pot." 

TussER :  Five  Mundred  Points  of 
Good  Svsbandry,  1580. 

Cakes  appear  also  at  the  vigil  of  All  Souls', 
the  next  day.  At  a  gathering  they  lie  in  a 
heap  for  the  guests  to  take.  In  return  they 
are  supposed  to  say  prayers  for  the  dead. 

"  A  Soule-cake,  a  Soule-cake  ;  have  mercy  on 
all  Christen  souls  for  a  Soule-cake." 

Old  Saying, 

The  poor  in  Staffordshire  and  Shropshire 
went  about  singing  for  soul-cakes  or  money, 
promising  to  pray  and  to  spend  the  alms  in 
masses  for  the  dead.  The  cakes  were  called 
Soul-mass  or  "  somas  "  cakes. 

"  Soul !    Soul  I  for  a  soul-cake  ; 
Pray,  good  mistress,  for  a  soul-caka 
One  for  Peter,  two  for  Paul, 
Three  for  them  who  made  us  all." 

Notes  and  Queries. 


IN  ENGLAND  AND  MAN       99 

In  Dorsetshire  Hallowe'en  was  celebrated 
by  the  ringing  of  bells  in  memory  of  the  dead. 
King  Henry  VIII  and  later  Queen  Elizabeth 
issued  commands  against  this  practice. 

In  Lancashire  in  the  early  nineteenth  cen- 
tury people  used  to  go  about  begging  for  can- 
dles to  drive  away  the  gatherings  of  witches. 
If  the  lights  were  kept  burning  till  midnight, 
no  evil  influence  could  remain  near. 

In  Derbyshire,  central  England,  torches  of 
straw  were  carried  about  the  stacks  on  All 
Souls'  Eve,  not  to  drive  away  evil  spirits,  as 
in  Scotland,  but  to  light  souls  through  Pur- 
gatory. 

Like  the  Bretons,  the  English  have  the  su- 
perstition that  the  dead  return  on  Hallowe'en. 

"  *  Why  do  jou  wait  at  your  door,  woman, 
Alone  in  the  night  ? ' 
'  I  am  waiting  for  one  who  will  come,  stranger, 
To  show  him  a  light. 
He  will  see  me  afar  on  the  road, 
And  be  glad  at  the  sight.' 

"  *  Have  you  no  fear  in  your  heart,  woman, 
To  stand  there  alone  ? 


loo  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

There  is  comfort  for  you  and  kindly  content 

Beside  the  hearthstone.' 
But  she  answered,  *  No  rest  can  I  have 

Till  I  welcome  my  own.' 

"  *  Is  it  far  he  must  travel  to-night, 
This  man  of  your  heart  ? ' 

*  Strange  lands  that  I  know  not,  and  pitiless 

seas 
Have  kept  us  apart. 
And  he  travels  this  night  to  his  home 
Without  guide,  without  chart.' 

**  *  And  has  he  companions  to  cheer  him  ?  * 
*  Aye,  many,'  she  said. 

•  The  candles  are  lighted,  the  hearthstones 

are  swept. 
The  fires  glow  red. 
We  shall  welcome  them  out  of  the  night  — 
Our  homecoming  dead.' " 

Letts  :  SaUow^eru 


The  "Witch  of  the  Walnut-Tree. 


CHAPTER  X 
IN  WALES 

In  Wales  the  custom  of  fires  persisted  from 
the  time  of  the  Druid  festival-days  longer 
than  in  any  other  place.  First  sacrifices  were 
burned  in  them  ;  then  instead  of  being  burned 
to  death,  the  creatures  merely  passed  through 
the  fire  ;  and  with  the  rise  of  Christianity  fire 
was  thought  to  be  a  protection  against  the 
evil  power  of  the  same  gods. 

Pontypridd,  in  South  Wales,  was  the  Druid 
religious  center  of  Wales.  It  is  still  marked 
by  a  stone  circle  and  an  altar  on  a  hill.  In 
after  years  it  was  believed  that  the  stones 
were  people  changed  to  that  form  by  the 
power  of  a  witch. 

In  North  Wales  the  November  Eve  fire, 
which  each  family  built  in  the  most  promi- 
nent place  near  the  house,  was  called  Coel 

Coeth.     Into  the  dying  fire  each  member  of 

101 


I02  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

the  family  threw  a  white  stone  marked  so 
that  he  could  recognize  it  again.  Circling 
about  the  fire  hand-in-hand  they  said  their 
prayers  and  went  to  bed.  In  the  morning 
each  searched  for  his  stone,  and  if  he  could 
not  find  it,  he  believed  that  he  would  die 
within  the  next  twelve  months.  This  is  still 
credited.  There  is  now  the  custom  also  of 
watching  the  fires  till  the  last  spark  dies,  and 
instantly  rushing  down  hill,  "  the  devil  (or 
the  cutty  black  sow)  take  the  hindmost."  A 
Cardiganshire  proverb  says : 

"  A  cutty '  black  sow 
On  every  stile, 
Spinning  and  carding 
Every  Allhallows'  Eve." 

November  Eve  was  called  "  Nos-Galan- 
Gaeof,"  the  night  of  the  winter  Calends,  that 
is,  the  night  before  the  first  day  of  winter. 
To  the  Welsh  it  was  New  Year's  Eve. 

Welsh  fairy  tradition  resembles  that  in  the 
near-by  countries.     There  is  an  old  story  of  a 

1  Short-tailed. 


IN  WALES  103 

man  who  lay  down  to  sleep  inside  a  fairy 
ring,  a  circle  of  greener  grass  where  the  fairies 
danced  by  night.  The  fairies  carried  him 
away  and  kept  him  seven  years,  and  after  he 
had  been  rescued  from  them  he  would  neither 
eat  nor  speak. 

In  the  sea  was  the  Otherworld,  a 

"  Green  fairy  island  reposing 
In  sunlight  and  beauty  on  ocean's  calm  breast." 

Paeey  :  Welsh  Melodies. 

This  was  the  abode  of  the  Druids,  and  hence 
of  all  supernatural  beings,  who  were 

"  Something  betwixt  heaven  and  hell, 
Something  that  neither  stood  nor  fell." 

Scott  :  The  Monastery. 

As  in  other  countries  the  fairies  or  pixies  are 
to  be  met  at  crossroads,  where  happenings, 
such  as  funerals,  may  be  witnessed  weeks  be- 
fore they  really  occur. 

At  the  Hallow  Eve  supper  parsnips  and 
cakes  are  eaten,  and  nuts  and  apples  roasted. 
A  "  puzzling  jug  "  holds  the  ale.     In  the  rim 


104  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

are  three  holes  that  seem  merely  ornamental. 
They  are  connected  with  the  bottom  of  the 
jug  by  pipes  through  the  handle,  and  the  un- 
witting toper  is  well  drenched  unless  he  is 
clever  enough  to  see  that  he  must  stop  up 
two  of  the  holes,  and  drink  through  the 
third. 

Spells  are  tried  in  Wales  too  with  apples 
and  nuts.  There  is  ducking  and  snapping 
for  apples.  Nuts  are  thrown  into  the  fire, 
denoting  prosperity  if  they  blaze  brightly, 
misfortune  if  they  pop,  or  smoulder  and  turn 
black. 

"  Old  Pally  threw  on  a  nut.  It  flickered  and 
then  blazed  up.  Maggee  tossed  one  into  the 
fire.     It  smouldered  and  gave  no  light." 

Mabks  :  AU-Sallows  Honeymoon. 

Fate  is  revealed  by  the  three  luggies  and 
the  ball  of  yarn  thrown  out  of  the  window : 
Scotch  and  Irish  charms.  The  leek  takes  the 
place  of  the  cabbage  in  Scotland.  Since  King 
Cadwallo  decorated  his  soldiers  with  leeks  for 
their  valor  in  a  battle  by  a  leek-garden,  they 


IN  WALES  105 

have  been  held  in  high  esteem  in  Wales.  A 
girl  sticks  a  knife  among  leeks  at  Hallowe'en, 
and  walks  backward  out  of  the  garden.  She 
returns  later  to  find  that  her  future  husband 
has  picked  up  the  knife  and  thrown  it  into 
the  center  of  the  leek-bed. 

Taking  two  long-stemmed  roses,  a  girl  goes 
to  her  room  in  silence.  She  twines  the  stems 
together,  naming  one  for  her  sweetheart  and 
the  other  for  herself,  and  thinking  this 
rhyme : 

"  Twine,  twine,  and  intertwina 
Let  his  love  be  wholly  mine. 
If  his  heart  be  kind  and  true, 
Deeper  grow  his  rose's  hue." 

She  can  see,  by  watching  closely,  her  lover's 
rose  grow  darker. 

The  sacred  ash  figures  in  one  charm.  The 
party  of  young  people  seek  an  even-leaved 
sprig  of  ash.  The  first  who  finds  one  calls 
out  "  cyniver."  If  a  boy  calls  out  first,  the 
first  girl  who  finds  another  perfect  shoot 
bears  the  name  of  the  boy's  future  wife. 


io6  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

Dancing  and  singing  to  the  music  of  the 
harp  close  the  evening. 

Instead  of  leaving  stones  in  the  fire  to 
determine  who  are  to  die,  people  now  go  to 
church  to  see  by  the  light  of  a  candle  held  in 
the  hand  the  spirits  of  those  marked  for 
death,  or  to  hear  the  names  called.  The 
wind  "  blowing  over  the  feet  of  the  corpses  " 
howls  about  the  doors  of  those  who  will  not 
be  alive  next  Hallowe'en. 

On  the  Eve  of  All  Souls'  Day,  twenty-four 
hours  after  Hallowe'en,  children  in  eastern 
Wales  go  from  house  to  house  singing  for 

"  An  apple  or  a  pear,  a  plum  or  a  cherry, 
Or  any  good  thing  to  make  us  merry." 

It  is  a  time  when  charity  is  given  freely  to 
the  poor.  On  this  night  and  the  next  day, 
fires  are  burned,  as  in  England,  to  light  souls 
through  Purgatory,  and  prayers  are  made  for 
a  good  wheat  harvest  next  year  by  the  Welsh, 
who  keep  the  forms  of  religion  very  devoutly. 


CHAPTER  XI 
IN  BEITTANY  AND  FEANCB 

The  Celts  had  been  taught  by  their  priests 
that  the  soul  is  immortal.  When  the  body 
died  the  spirit  passed  instantly  into  another 
existence  in  a  country  close  at  hand.  We  re- 
member that  the  Otherworld  of  the  British 
Isles,  peopled  by  the  banished  Tuatha  and  all 
superhuman  beings,  was  either  in  caves  in  the 
earth,  as  in  Ireland,  or  in  an  island  like  the 
English  Avalon.  By  giving  a  mortal  one  of 
their  magic  apples  to  eat,  fairies  could  entice 
him  whither  they  would,  and  at  last  away 
into  their  country. 

In  the  Irish  story  of  Nera  (q.  v.),  the  corpse 

of  the  criminal  is  the  cause  of  Nera's  being 

lured  into  the  cave.     So  the  dead  have  the 

same  power  as  fairies,  and  live  in  the  same 

place.     On  May  Eve  and  November  Eve  the 

dead  and  the  fairies  hold  their  revels  together 

and  make  excursions  together.     If  a  young 

107 


io8  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

person  died,  he  was  said  to  be  called  away  by 
the  fairies.  The  Taatha  may  not  have  been 
a  race  of  gods,  but  merely  the  early  Celts,  who 
grew  to  godlike  proportions  as  the  years  raised 
a  mound  of  lore  and  legends  for  their  pedes- 
tal. So  they  might  really  be  only  the  dead, 
and  not  of  superhuman  nature. 

In  the  fourth  century  a.  d.,  the  men  of 
England  were  hard  pressed  by  the  Picts  and 
Scots  from  the  northern  border,  and  were 
helped  in  their  need  by  the  Teutons.  When 
this  tribe  saw  the  fair  country  of  the  Britons 
they  decided  to  hold  it  for  themselves.  After 
they  had  driven  out  the  northern  tribes,  in 
the  fifth  century,  when  King  Arthur  was 
reigning  in  Cornwall,  they  drove  out  those 
whose  cause  they  had  fought.  So  the  Britons 
were  scattered  to  the  mountains  of  Wales,  to 
Cornwall,  and  across  the  Channel  to  Armo- 
rica,  a  part  of  France,  which  they  named 
Brittany  after  their  home-land.  In  lower 
Brittany,  out  of  the  zone  of  French  influence, 
a  language  something  like  Welsh  or  old 
British  is  still  spoken,  and  many  of  the  Celtic 


IN  BRITTANY  AND  FRANCE    109 

beliefs  were  retained  more  untouched  than  in 
Britain,  not  clear  of  paganism  till  the  seven- 
teenth century.  Here  especially  did  Chris- 
tianity have  to  adapt  the  old  belief  to  her  own 
ends. 

Gaul,  as  we  have  seen  from  Caesar's  account, 
had  been  one  of  the  chief  seats  of  Druidical 
belief.  The  religious  center  was  Carnutes, 
now  Chartrain.  The  rites  of  sacrifice  sur- 
vived in  the  same  forms  as  in  the  British 
Isles.  In  the  fields  of  Deux-Sevres  fires  were 
built  of  stubble,  ferns,  leaves,  and  thorns,  and 
the  people  danced  about  them  and  burned 
nuts  in  them.  On  St.  John's  Day  animals 
were  burned  in  the  fires  to  secure  the  cattle 
from  disease.  This  was  continued  down  into 
the  seventeenth  century. 

The  pagan  belief  that  lasted  the  longest  in 
Brittany,  and  is  by  no  means  dead  yet,  was 
the  cult  of  the  dead.  Caesar  said  that  the 
Celts  of  Gaul  traced  their  ancestry  from  the 
god  of  death,  whom  he  called  Dispater.  Now 
figures  of  I'Ankou,  a  skeleton  armed  with  a 
spear,  can  be  seen  in  most  villages  of  Brittany. 


no  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

This  mindfulness  of  death  was  strengthened 
by  the  sight  of  the  prehistoric  cairns  of  stones 
on  hilltops,  the  ancient  altars  of  the  Druids, 
and  dolmens,  formed  of  one  flat  rock  resting 
like  a  roof  on  two  others  set  up  on  end  with 
a  space  between  them,  ancient  tombs ;  and  by 
the  Bretons  being  cut  ojff  from  the  rest  of 
France  by  the  nature  of  the  country,  and  shut 
in  among  the  uplands,  black  and  misty  in 
November,  and  blown  over  by  chill  Atlantic 
winds.  Under  a  seeming  dull  indifference 
and  melancholy  the  Bretons  conceal  a  lively 
imagination,  and  no  place  has  a  greater 
wealth  of  legendary  literature. 

What  fairies,  dwarfs,  pixies,  and  the  like 
are  to  the  Celts  of  other  places,  the  spirits  of 
the  dead  are  to  the  Celts  of  Brittany.  They 
possess  the  earth  on  Christmas,  St.  John's 
Day,  and  All  Saints'.  In  Finistere,  that 
western  point  of  France,  there  is  a  saying  that 
on  the  Eve  of  All  Souls'  "  there  are  more 
dead  in  every  house  than  sands  on  the  shore." 
The  dead  have  the  power  to  charm  mortals 
and  take  them  away,  and  to  foretell  the  fu- 


IN  BRITTANY  AND  FRANCE  iii 

ture.  They  must  not  be  spoken  of  directly, 
any  more  than  the  fairies  of  the  Scottish 
border,  or  met  with,  for  fear  of  evil  results. 

By  the  Bretons  of  the  sixth  century  the 
near-by  island  of  Britain,  which  they  could 
just  see  on  clear  days,  was  called  the  Other- 
world.  An  historian,  Procopius,  tells  how  the 
people  nearest  Britain  were  exempted  from 
paying  tribute  to  the  Franks,  because  they 
were  subject  to  nightly  summons  to  ferry  the 
souls  of  the  dead  across  in  their  boats,  and  de- 
liver them  into  the  hands  of  the  keeper  of 
souIp.  Farther  inland  a  black  bog  seemed  to 
be  the  entrance  to  an  otherworld  under- 
ground. One  location  which  combined  the 
ideas  of  an  island  and  a  cave  was  a  city  buried 
in  the  sea.  The  people  imagined  they  could 
hear  the  bells  of  Ker-Is  ringing,  and  joyous 
music  sounding,  for  though  this  was  a  city 
of  the  dead,  it  resembled  the  fairy  palaces  of 
Ireland,  and  was  ruled  by  King  Grallon  and 
his  fair  daughter  Dahut,  who  could  lure 
mortals  away  by  her  beauty  and  enchant- 
ments. 


112  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

The  approach  of  winter  is  believed  to  drive 
like  the  flocks,  the  souls  of  the  dead  from 
their  cold  cheerless  graves  to  the  food  and 
warmth  of  home.  This  is  why  November 
Eve,  the  night  before  the  first  day  of  winter, 
was  made  sacred  to  them. 

"  When  comes  the  harvest  of  the  year 
Before  the  scythe  the  wheat  will  fall." 

BoTEEL  :  Songs  of  Brittany. 

The  harvest-time  reminded  the  Bretons  of  the 
garnering  by  that  reaper,  Death.  On  Novem- 
ber Eve  milk  is  poured  on  graves,  feasts  and 
candles  set  out  on  the  tables,  and  fires  lighted 
on  the  hearths  to  welcome  the  spirits  of  de- 
parted kinsfolk  and  friends. 

In  France  from  the  twelfth  to  the  fourteenth 
century  stone  buildings  like  lighthouses  were 
erected  in  cemeteries.  They  were  twenty  or 
thirty  feet  high,  with  lanterns  on  top.  On 
Hallowe'en  they  were  kept  burning  to  safe- 
guard the  people  from  the  fear  of  night-wan- 
dering spirits  and  the  dead,  so  they  were 
called  "  lanternes  des  morts." 


IN  BRITTANY  AND  FRANCE   113 

The  cemetery  is  the  social  center  of  the 
Breton  village.  It  is  at  once  meeting-place, 
playground,  park,  and  church.  The  tombs 
that  outline  the  hills  make  the  place  seem 
one  vast  cemetery.  On  All  Souls'  Eve  in  the 
mid-nineteenth  century  the  "  procession  of 
tombs "  was  held.  All  formed  a  line  and 
walked  about  the  cemetery,  calling  the  names 
of  those  who  were  dead,  as  they  approached 
their  resting-places.  The  record  was  carefully 
remembered,  so  that  not  one  should  seem  to 
be  forgotten. 

"  We  live  with  our  dead,"  say  the  Bretons. 
First  on  the  Eve  of  All  Souls'  comes  the  re- 
ligious service,  "  black  vespers."  The  blessed- 
ness of  death  is  praised,  the  sorrows  and 
shortness  of  life  dwelt  upon.  After  a  com- 
mon prayer  all  go  out  to  the  cemetery  to  pray 
separately,  each  by  the  graves  of  his  kin,  or  to 
the  "  place  of  bones,"  where  the  remains  of 
those  long  dead  are  thrown  all  together  in 
one  tomb.  They  can  be  seen  behind  gratings, 
by  the  people  as  they  pass,  and  rows  of  skulls 
at  the  sides  of  the  entrance  can  be  touched. 


114  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

In  these  tombs  are  Latin  inscriptions  mean- 
ing :  "  Remember  thou  must  die,"  "  To-day  to 
me,  and  to-morrow  to  thee,"  and  others  re- 
minding the  reader  of  his  coming  death. 

From  the  cemetery  the  people  go  to  a  house 
or  an  inn  which  is  the  gathering- place  for  the 
night,  singing  or  talking  loudly  on  the  road 
to  warn  the  dead  who  are  hastening  home, 
lest  they  may  meet.  Reunions  of  families 
take  place  on  this  night,  in  the  spirit  of  the 
Roman  feast  of  the  dead,  the  Feralia,  of  which 
Ovid  wrote : 

"  After  the  visit  to  the  tombs  and  to  the  an- 
cestors who  are  no  longer  with  us,  it  is  pleasant 
to  turn  towards  the  living ;  after  the  loss  of  so 
many,  it  is  pleasant  to  behold  those  who  remain 
of  our  blood,  and  to  reckon  up  the  generations 

of  our  descendants." 

Fasti. 

A  toast  is  drunk  to  the  memory  of  the  de- 
parted. The  men  sit  about  the  fireplace  smok- 
ing or  weaving  baskets ;  the  women  apart, 
knitting  or  spinning  by  the  light  of  the  fire 
and    one   candle.     The    children    play    with 


IN  BRITTANY  AND  FRANCE   115 

their  gifts  of  apples  and  nuts.  As  the  hour 
grows  later,  and  mysterious  noises  begin  to 
be  heard  about  the  house,  and  a  curtain  sways 
in  a  draught,  the  thoughts  of  the  company 
already  centred  upon  the  dead  find  expres- 
sion in  words,  and  each  has  a  tale  to  tell  of 
an  adventure  with  some  friend  or  enemy  who 
has  died. 

The  dead  are  thought  to  take  up  existence 
where  they  left  it  off,  working  at  the  same 
trades,  remembering  their  old  debts,  likes  and 
dislikes,  even  wearing  the  same  clothes  they 
wore  in  life.  Most  of  them  stay  not  in 
some  distant,  definite  Otherworld,  but  frequent 
the  scenes  of  their  former  life.  They  never 
trespass  upon  daylight,  and  it  is  dangerous  to 
meet  them  at  night,  because  they  are  very 
ready  to  punish  any  slight  to  their  memory, 
such  as  selling  their  possessions  or  forgetting 
the  hospitality  due  them.  L'Ankou  will 
come  to  get  a  supply  of  shavings  if  the  coffins 
are  not  lined  with  them  to  make  a  softer 
resting-place  for  the  dead  bodies. 

The    lively   Celtic   imagination   turns   the 


ii6  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

merest  coincidence  into  an  encounter  with  a 
spirit,  and  the  poetic  temperament  of  the 
narrators  clothes  the  stories  with  vividness 
and  mystery.  They  tell  how  the  presence  of 
a  ghost  made  the  midsummer  air  so  cold  that 
even  wood  did  not  burn,  and  of  groans  and 
footsteps  underground  as  long  as  the  ghost  is 
displeased  with  what  his  relatives  are  doing. 

Just  before  midnight  a  bell-man  goes  about 
the  streets  to  give  warning  of  the  hour  when 
the  spirits  will  arrive. 

"  They  will  sit  where  we  sat,  and  will  talk  of 
us  as  we  talked  of  them :  in  the  gray  of  the 
morning  only  will  they  go  away." 

Le  Bbaz  :  Night  of  the  Dead. 

The  supper  for  the  souls  is  then  set  out. 
The  poor  who  live  in  the  mountains  have 
only  black  corn,  milk,  and  smoked  bacon  to 
offer,  but  it  is  given  freely.  Those  who  can 
afford  it  spread  on  a  white  cloth  dishes  of 
clotted  milk,  hot  pancakes,  and  mugs  of 
cider. 

After  all  have  retired  to  lie  with  both  eyes 


IN  BRITTANY  AND  FRANCE  117 

shut  tight  lest  they  see  one  of  the  guests, 
death-singers  make  their  rounds,  chanting 
under  the  windows : 

"  You  are  comfortably  lying  in  your  bed, 
But  with  the  poor  dead  it  is  otherwise ; 
You  are  stretched  softly  in  your  bed 
While  the  poor  souls  are  wandering  abroad. 

"  A  white  sheet  and  five  planks, 
A  bundle  of  straw  beneath  the  head, 
Five  feet  of  earth  above 
Are  all  the  worldly  goods  we  own." 

Le  Braz  :  Night  of  the  Dead. 

The  tears  of  their  deserted  friends  disturb  the 
comfort  of  the  dead,  and  sometimes  they  ap- 
pear to  tell  those  in  sorrow  that  their  shrouds 
are  always  wet  from  the  tears  shed  on  their 
graves. 

Wakened  by  the  dirge  of  the  death-singers 
the  people  rise  and  pray  for  the  souls  of  the 
departed. 

Divination  has  little  part  in  the  annals  of 
the  evening,  but  one  in  Finist^re  is  recorded. 
Twenty-five  new  needles  are  laid  in  a  dish, 


ii8  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

and  named,  and  water  is  poured  upon  them. 
Those  who  cross  are  enemies. 

In  France  is  held  a  typical  Continental 
celebration  of  All  Saints'  and  All  Souls'.  On 
October  31st  the  children  go  asking  for  flowers 
to  decorate  the  graves,  and  to  adorn  the 
church.  At  night  bells  ring  to  usher  in  All 
Saints'.  On  the  day  itself  the  churches  are 
decorated  gaily  with  flowers,  candles,  and 
banners,  and  a  special  service  is  held.  On 
the  second  day  of  November  the  light  and 
color  give  way  to  black  drapings,  funeral 
songs,  and  prayers. 


CHAPTER  XII 
THE  TEUTONIC  EELIGION.     WITCHES 

The  Teutons,  that  race  of  northern  peoples 
called  by  the  Romans,  "  barbarians,"  com- 
prised the  Goths  and  Vandals  who  lived  in 
Scandinavia,  and  the  Germans  who  dwelt 
north  of  Italy  and  east  of  Gaul. 

The  nature  of  the  northern  country  was 
such  that  the  people  could  not  get  a  living  by 
peaceful  agriculture.  So  it  was  natural  that 
in  the  intervals  of  cattle-tending  they  should 
explore  the  seas  all  about,  and  ravage  neigh- 
boring lands.  The  Romans  and  the  Gauls 
experienced  this  in  the  centuries  just  before 
and  after  Christ,  and  England  from  the  eighth 
to  the  tenth  centuries.  Such  a  life  made  the 
Norsemen  adventurous,  hardy,  warlike,  inde- 
pendent, and  quick  of  action,  while  the  Celts 
were  by  nature  more  slothful  and  fond  of 
peaceful  social  gatherings,  though  of  quicker 

intellect  and  wit. 

119 


I20  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

Like  the  Greeks  and  Romans,  the  Teutons 
had  twelve  gods  and  goddesses,  among  whom 
were  Odin  or  Wotan,  the  king,  and  his  wife 
Freya,  queen  of  beauty  and  love.  Idun 
guarded  the  apples  of  immortality,  which  the 
gods  ate  to  keep  them  eternally  young.  The 
chief  difference  in  Teutonic  mythology  was 
the  presence  of  an  evil  god,  Loki.  Like  Vul- 
can, Loki  was  a  god  of  fire,  like  him,  Loki  was 
lame  because  he  had  been  cast  out  of  heaven. 
Loki  was  always  plotting  against  the  other 
gods,  as  Lucifer,  after  being  banished  from 
Heaven  by  God,  plotted  against  him  and  his 
people,  and  became  Satan,  "  the  enemy." 

"  Him  the  Almighty  Power 
Hurl'd  headlong  flaming  from  th'  ethereal  sky 
"With  hideous  ruin  and  combustion  down 
To  bottomless  perdition,  there  to  dwell 
In  adamantine  chains  and  penal  fire, 
Who  durst  defy  th'  Omnipotent  to  arms." 

Milton  :  Paradise  Lost. 

It  was  this  god  of  evil  in  Teutonic  myth 
who  was  responsible  for  the  death  of  the 
bright  beautiful  sun-god,    Baldur.     Mistletoe 


THE  TEUTONIC  RELIGION    121 

was  the  only  thing  in  the  world  which  had 
not  sworn  not  to  harm  Baldur.  Loki  knew 
this,  and  gave  a  twig  of  mistletoe  to  Baldur's 
blind  brother,  Hodur,  and  Hodur  cast  it  at 
Baldur  and  "  unwitting  slew  "  him.  Vali,  a 
younger  brother  of  Baldur,  avenged  him  by 
killing  Hodur.  Hodur  is  darkness  and  Bal- 
dur light ;  they  are  brothers  ;  the  light  falls  a 
victim  to  blind  darkness,  who  reigns  until  a 
younger  brother,  the  sun  of  the  next  day, 
rises  to  slay  him  in  turn. 

Below  these  gods,  all  nature  was  peopled 
with  divinities.  There  were  elves  of  two 
kinds  :  black  elves,  called  trolls,  who  were 
frost-spirits,  and  guarded  treasure  (seeds)  in 
the  ground  ;  and  white  elves,  who  lived  in 
mid-heaven,  and  danced  on  the  earth  in  fairy 
rings,  where  a  mortal  entering  died.  Will-o'- 
the-wisps  hovered  over  swamps  to  mislead 
travellers,  and  jack-o'-lanterns,  the  spirits  of 
murderers,  walked  the  earth  near  the  places 
of  their  crimes. 

The  Otherworlds  of  the  Teutons  were  Val- 
halla, the   abode  of  the  heroes  whom  death 


122  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

had  fouud  on  the  battlefield,  and  Niflheim, 
"  the  misty  realm,"  secure  from  the  cold  out- 
side, ruled  over  by  Queen  Hel.  Valkyries, 
warlike  women  who  rode  through  the  air  on 
swift  horses,  seized  the  heroes  from  the  field 
of  slaughter,  and  took  them  to  the  halls  of 
Valhalla,  where  they  enjoyed  daily  combats, 
long  feasts,  and  drinking-bouts,  music  and 
story-telling. 

The  sacred  tree  of  the  Druids  was  the  oak  ; 
that  of  the  Teutonic  priests  the  ash.  The  flat 
disk  of  the  earth  was  believed  to  be  supported 
by  a  great  ash-tree,  Yggdrasil, 

"  An  ash  know  I  standing, 
Named  Yggdrasil, 
A  stately  tree  sprinkled 
With  water  the  purest ; 
Thence  come  the  dewdrops 
That  fall  in  the  dales  ; 
Ever-blooming,  it  stands 
O'er  the  Urdar-fountain." 

Voluspa  saga.     (Blackwell  trans.) 

guarded  by  three  fates,  Was,  Will,  and  Shall 
Be.     The  name  of  Was  means  the  past,  of 


THE  TEUTONIC  RELIGION    123 

Will,  the  power,  howbeit  small,  which  men 
have  over  present  circumstances,  and  Shall 
Be,  the  future  over  which  man  has  no  con- 
trol. Vurdh,  the  name  of  the  latter,  gives  us 
the  word  "  weird,"  which  means  fate  or  fate- 
ful. The  three  Weird  Sisters  in  Macbeth  are 
seeresses. 

Besides  the  ash,  other  trees  and  shrubs  were 
believed  to  have  peculiar  powers,  which  they 
have  kept,  with  some  changes  of  meaning,  to 
this  day.  The  elder  (elves'  grave),  the  haw- 
thorn, and  the  juniper,  were  sacred  to  super- 
natural powers. 

The  priests  of  the  Teutons  sacrificed  pris- 
oners of  war  in  consecrated  groves,  to  Tyr, 
god  of  the  sword.  The  victims  were  not 
burned  alive,  as  by  the  Druids,  but  cut  and 
torn  terribly,  and  their  dead  bodies  burned. 
From  these  sacrifices  auspices  were  taken.  A 
man's  innocence  or  guilt  was  manifested  by 
gods  to  men  through  ordeals  by  fire ;  walking 
upon  red-hot  ploughshares,  holding  a  heated 
bar  of  iron,  or  thrusting  the  hands  into  red- 
hot  gauntlets,  or  into  boiling  water.     If  after 


124  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

a  certain  number  of  days  no  burns  appeared 
the  person  was  declared  innocent.  If  a  sus- 
pected man,  thrown  into  the  water,  floated, 
he  was  guilty  ;  if  he  sank,  he  was  acquitted. 

The  rites  of  the  Celts  were  done  in  secret, 
and  it  was  forbidden  that  they  be  written 
down.  Those  of  the  Teutons  were  commem- 
orated in  Edda  and  Saga  (poetry  and  prose). 

In  the  far  north  the  shortness  of  summer 
and  the  length  of  winter  so  impressed  the 
people  that  when  they  made  a  story  about  it 
they  told  of  a  maiden,  the  Spring,  put  to 
sleep,  and  guarded,  along  with  a  hoard  of 
treasure,  by  a  ring  of  fire.  One  knight  only 
could  break  through  the  flames,  awaken  her 
and  seize  the  treasure.  He  is  the  returning 
sun,  and  the  treasure  he  gets  possession  of  is 
the  wealth  of  summer  vegetation.  So  there 
is  the  story  of  Brynhild,  pricked  by  the 
"  sleep-thorn "  of  her  father,  Wotan,  and 
sleeping  until  Sigurd  wakens  her.  They 
marry,  but  soon  Sigurd  has  to  give  her  up  to 
Gunnar,  the  relentless  winter,  and  Gunnar 
cannot  rest  until  he  has  killed  Sigurd,  and 


THE  TEUTONIC  RELIGION    125 

reigns  undisturbed.  Grimms'  story  of  Ra- 
punzel,  the  princess  who  was  shut  up  by  a 
winter  witch,  and  of  Briar-Rose,  pricked  by  a 
witch's  spindle,  and  sleeping  inside  a  hedge 
which  blooms  with  spring  at  the  knight's  ap- 
proach, mean  likewise  the  struggle  between 
summer  and  winter. 

The  chief  festivals  of  the  Teutonic  year  were 
held  at  Midsummer  and  Midwinter.  May- 
Day,  the  very  beginning  of  spring,  was  cele- 
brated by  May-ridings,  when  winter  and 
spring,  personified  by  two  warriors,  engaged 
in  a  combat  in  which  Winter,  the  fur-clad 
king  of  ice  and  snow,  was  defeated.  It  was 
then  that  the  sacred  fire  had  been  kindled, 
and  the  sacrificial  feast  held.  Judgments 
were  rendered  then. 

The  summer  solstice  was  marked  by  bon- 
fires, like  those  of  the  Celts  on  May  Eve  and 
Midsummer.  They  were  kindled  in  an  open 
place  or  on  a  hill,  and  the  ceremonies  held 
about  them  were  similar  to  the  Celtic.  As 
late  as  the  eighteenth  century  these  same 
customs  were  observed  in  Iceland. 


126  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

A  May-pole  wreathed  with  magical  herbs  is 
erected  as  the  center  of  the  dance  in  Sweden, 
and  in  Norway  a  child  chosen  May-bride  is 
followed  by  a  procession  as  at  a  real  wedding. 
This  is  a  symbol  of  the  wedding  of  sun 
and  earth  deities  in  the  spring.  The  May- 
pole, probably  imported  from  Celtic  coun- 
tries, is  used  at  Midsummer  because  the  spring 
does  not  begin  in  the  north  before  June. 

Yule-tide  in  December  celebrated  the  sun's 
turning  back,  and  was  marked  by  banquets 
and  gayety.  A  chief  feature  of  all  these 
feasts  was  the  drinking  of  toasts  to  the  gods, 
with  vows  and  prayers. 

By  the  sixth  century  Christianity  had  sup- 
planted Druidism  in  the  British  Isles.  It  was 
the  ninth  before  Christianity  made  much  prog- 
ress in  Scandinavia.  After  King  Olaf  had 
converted  his  nation,  the  toasts  which  had 
been  drunk  to  the  pagan  gods  were  kept  in 
honor  of  Christian  saints  ;  for  instance,  those 
to  Freya  were  now  drunk  to  the  Virgin  Mary 
or  to  St.  Gertrude. 

The    "  wetting    of    the    sark-sleeve,"   that 


THE  TEUTONIC  RELIGION    127 

custom  of  Scotland  and  Ireland,  was  in  its 
earliest  form  a  rite  to  Freya  as  the  northern 
goddess  of  love.  To  secure  her  aid  in  a  love- 
aflfair,  a  maid  would  wash  in  a  running  stream 
a  piece  of  fine  linen — for  Freya  was  fond  of 
personal  adornment — and  would  hang  it  be- 
fore the  fire  to  dry  an  hour  before  midnight. 
At  half-past  eleven  she  must  turn  it,  and  at 
twelve  her  lover's  apparition  would  appear  to 
her,  coming  in  at  the  half-open  door. 

"  The  wind  howled  through  the  leafless 
boughs,  and  there  was  every  appearance  of  an 
early  and  severe  winter,  as  indeed  befell.  Long 
before  eleven  o'clock  all  was  hushed  and  quiet 
within  the  house,  and  indeed  without  (nothing 
was  heard),  except  the  cold  wind  which  howled 
mournfully  in  gusts.  The  house  was  an  old 
farmhouse,  and  we  sat  in  the  large  kitchen  with 
its  stone  floor,  awaiting  the  first  stroke  of  the 
eleventh  hour.  It  struck  at  last,  and  then  all 
pale  and  trembling  we  hung  the  garment  before 
the  fire  which  we  had  piled  up  with  wood,  and 
set  the  door  ajar,  for  that  was  an  essential  point. 
The  door  was  lofty  and  opened  upon  the  farm- 
yard, through  which  there  was  a  kind  of 
thoroughfare,  very  seldom  used,  it  is  true,  and 


128  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

at  each  end  of  it  there  was  a  gate  by  which 
wayfarers  occasionally  passed  to  shorten  the 
way.  There  we  sat  without  speaking  a  word, 
shivering  with  cold  and  fear,  listening  to  the 
clock  which  went  slowly,  tick,  tick,  and  oc- 
casionally starting  as  the  door  creaked  on  its 
hinges,  or  a  half-burnt  billet  fell  upon  the 
hearth.  My  sister  was  ghastly  white,  as  white 
as  the  garment  which  was  drying  before  the 
fire.  And  now  half  an  hour  had  elapsed  and 
it  was  time  to  turn.  .  .  .  This  we  did, 
I  and  my  sister,  without  saying  a  word,  and 
then  we  again  sank  on  our  chairs  on  either 
side  of  the  fire.  I  was  tired,  and  as  the  clock 
went  tick-a-tick,  I  began  to  feel  myself  dozing. 
I  did  doze,  I  believe.  All  of  a  sudden  I  sprang 
up.  The  clock  was  striking  one,  two,  but  ere  it 
could  give  the  third  chime,  mercy  upon  us !  we 
heard  the  gate  slam  to  with  a  tremendous 
noise.     .     .     ." 

"  "Well,  and  what  happened  then  ?  " 
"  Happened !  before  I  could  recover  myself, 
my  sister  had  sprung  to  the  door,  and  both 
locked  and  bolted  it.  The  next  moment  she 
was  in  convulsions.  I  scarcely  knew  what  hap- 
pened ;  and  yet  it  appeared  to  me  for  a  moment 
that  something  pressed  against  the  door  with  a 
low  moaning  sound.     Whether  it  was  the  wind 


THE  TEUTONIC  RELIGION    129 

OP  not,  I  can't  say.    I  shall  never  forget  that 

night.     About  two  hours  later,  my  father  came 

home.     He  had  been  set  upon  by  a  highwayman 

whom  he  beat  off." 

BoKEOW  :  Lavengro. 


Freya  and  Odin  especially  had  had  power 
over  the  souls  of  the  dead.  When  Chris- 
tianity turned  all  the  old  gods  into  spirits  of 
evil,  these  two  were  accused  especially  of  pos- 
sessing unlawful  learning,  as  having  knowl- 
edge of  the  hidden  matters  of  death.  This 
unlawful  wisdom  is  the  first  accusation  that 
has  always  been  brought  against  witches.  A 
mirror  is  often  used  to  contain  it.  Such  are 
the  crystals  of  the  astrologers,  and  the  look- 
ing-glasses which  on  Hallowe'en  materialize 
wishes. 

From  that  time  in  the  Middle  Ages  when 
witches  were  first  heard  of,  it  has  nearly 
always  been  women  who  were  accused. 
Women  for  the  most  part  were  the  priests  in 
the  old  days :  it  was  a  woman  to  whom 
Apollo  at  Delphi  breathed  his  oracles.  In  all 
times  it  has  been  women  who  plucked  herbs 


130  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

and  concocted  drinks  of  healing  and  refresh- 
ment. So  it  was  very  easy  to  imagine  that 
they  experimented  with  poisons  and  herbs  of 
magic  power  under  the  guidance  of  the  now 
evil  gods.  If  they  were  so  directed,  they 
must  go  on  occasions  to  consult  with  their 
masters.  The  idea  arose  of  a  witches'  Sab- 
bath, when  women  were  enabled  by  evil 
means  to  fly  away,  and  adore  in  secret  the 
gods  from  whom  the  rest  of  the  world  had 
turned.  There  were  such  meeting-places  all 
over  Europe.  They  had  been  places  of  sacri- 
fice, of  judgment,  or  of  wells  and  springs  con- 
sidered holy  under  the  old  religion,  and 
whither  the  gods  had  now  been  banished. 
The  most  famous  was  the  Blocksberg  in  the 
Hartz  mountains  in  Germany. 

"  Dame  Baubo  first,  to  lead  the  crew  f 
A  tough  old  sow  and  the  mother  thereon, 
Then  follow  the  witches,  every  one." 

Goethe  :  Faust.    (Taylor  trails.) 

In  Norway  the  mountains  above  Bergen  were 
a  resort,  and  the  Dovrefeld,  once  the  home  of 
the  trolls. 


THE  TEUTONIC  RELIGION    131 

"  It's  easy  to  slip  in  here, 
But  outward  the  Dovre-King's  gate  opens  not." 

Ibsen  :  Peer  Gynt.  (Archer  trans.) 

In  Italy  the  witches  met  under  a  walnut  tree 
near  Benevento  ;  in  France,  in  Puy  de  Dome  ; 
in  Spain,  near  Seville. 

In  these  night-ridings  Odin  was  the  leader 
of  a  wild  hunt.  In  stormy,  blustering  au- 
tumn weather 

"  The  wonted  roar  was  up  among  the  woods." 

Milton  :  Comus. 

Odin  rode  in  pursuit  of  shadowy  deer  with 
the  Furious  Host  behind  him.  A  ghostly 
huntsman  of  a  later  age  was  Dietrich  von 
Bern,  doomed  to  hunt  till  the  Judgment  Day. 
Frau  Venus  in  Wagner's  Tannhduser  held 
her  revels  in  an  underground  palace  in  the 
Horselberg  in  Thuringia,  Germany.  This 
was  one  of  the  seats  of  Holda,  the  goddess  of 
spring.  Venus  herself  is  like  the  Christian 
conception  of  Freya  and  Hel.  She  gathers 
about  her  a  throng  of  nymphs,  sylphs,  and 


132  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

those  she  has  lured  into  the  mountain  by  in- 
toxicating music  and  promises.  "  The  en- 
chanting sounds  enticed  only  those  in  whose 
hearts  wild  sensuous  longings  had  already 
taken  root."  Of  these  Tannhauser  is  one. 
He  has  stayed  a  year,  but  it  seems  to  him 
only  one  day.  Already  he  is  tired  of  the  rosy 
light  and  eternal  music  and  languor,  and 
longs  for  the  fresh  green  world  of  action  he 
once  knew.  He  fears  that  he  has  forfeited 
his  soul's  salvation  by  being  there  at  all,  but 
cries, 

"  Salvation  rests  for  me  in  Mary  ! " 

Wagner  :   Tannhauser. 

At  the  holy  name  Venus  and  her  revellers 
vanish,  and  Tannhauser  finds  himself  in  a 
meadow,  hears  the  tinkling  herd-bells,  and  a 
shepherd's  voice  singing, 

"  Frau  Holda,  goddess  of  the  spring, 
Steps  forth  from  the  mountains  old ; 
She  comes,  and  all  the  brooklets  sing, 
And  fled  is  winter's  cold. 
«  *  ♦  «  • 


THE  TEUTONIC  RELIGION    133 

Play,  play,  my  pipe,  your  lightest  lay. 
For  spring  has  come,  and  merry  May  !  " 

Tannhduser.     (Huekel  trans.) 

praising  the  goddess  in  her  blameless  state. 

By  the  fifteenth  century  Satan,  taking  the 
place  of  the  gods,  assumed  control  of  the  evil 
creatures.  Now  that  witches  were  the  fol- 
lowers of  the  Devil,  they  wrote  their  names 
in  his  book,  and  were  carried  away  by  him 
for  the  revels  by  night.  A  new  witch  was 
pricked  with  a  needle  to  initiate  her  into  his 
company.  At  the  party  the  Devil  was  adored 
with  worship  due  to  God  alone.  Dancing,  a 
device  of  the  pagans,  and  hence  considered 
wholly  wicked,  was  indulged  in  to  unseemly 
lengths.  In  1883  in  Sweden  it  was  believed 
that  dances  were  held  about  the  sanctuaries 
of  the  ancient  gods,  and  that  whoever 
stopped  to  watch  were  caught  by  the  dancers 
and  whirled  away.  If  they  profaned  holy 
days  by  this  dancing,  they  were  doomed  to 
keep  it  up  for  a  year.  ' 

At  the  witches'  Sabbath  the  Devil  himself 


134  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

sometimes  appeared  as  a  goat,  and  the  witches 
were  attended  by  cats,  owls,  bats,  and  cuckoos, 
because  these  creatures  had  once  been  sacred 
to  Freya.  At  the  feast  horse-flesh,  once  the 
food  of  the  gods  at  banquets,  was  eaten.  The 
broth  for  the  feast  was  brewed  in  a  kettle 
held  over  the  fire  by  a  tripod,  like  that  which 
supported  the  seat  of  Apollo's  priestess  at 
Delphi.  The  kettle  may  be  a  reminder  of  the 
one  Thor  got,  which  gave  to  each  guest  what- 
ever food  he  asked  of  it,  or  it  may  be  merely 
that  used  in  brewing  the  herb-remedies  which 
women  made  before  they  were  thought  to 
practise  witchcraft.  In  the  kettle  were  cooked 
mixtures  which  caused  storms  and  ship- 
wrecks, plagues,  and  blights.  No  salt  was 
eaten,  for  that  was  a  wholesome  substance. 

The  witches  of  Germany  did  not  have  pro- 
phetic power ;  those  of  Scandinavia,  like  the 
Norse  Fates,  did  have  it.  The  troll-wives  of 
Scandinavia  were  like  the  witches  of  Germany 
— they  were  cannibals,  especially  relishing 
children,  like  the  witch  in  Hansel  and  Grethel. 

From  the  fourteenth  to  the  eighteenth  cen- 


THE  TEUTOMC  RELIGION    135 

tury  all  through  Europe  and  the  new  world 
people  thought  to  be  witches,  and  hence  in 
the  devil's  service,  were  persecuted.  It  was 
believed  that  they  were  able  to  take  the  form 
of  beasts.  A  wolf  or  other  animal  is  caught 
in  a  trap  or  shot,  and  disappears.  Later  an 
old  woman  who  lives  alone  in  the  woods  is 
found  suffering  from  a  similar  wound.  She 
is  then  declared  to  be  a  witch. 

"  There  was  once  an  old  castle  in  the  middle 

of  a  vast  thick  wood  ;  in  it  hved  an  old  woman 

quite  alone,  and  she  was  a  witch.     By  day  she 

made  herself  into  a  cat  or  a  screech-owl,  but 

regularly  at  night  she  became  a  human  being 

again." 

Geimm  :  Jorinda  and  Joringel. 

"  Hares  found  on  May  morning  are  witches 
and  should  be  stoned,"  reads  an  old  supersti- 
tion. "  If  you  tease  a  cat  on  May  Eve,  it  will 
turn  into  a  witch  and  hurt  you." 


CHAPTER  XIII 

WALPTTRGIS  NIGHT 

Walpurga  was  a  British  nun  who  went  to 
Geripany  in  the  eighth  century  to  found  holy 
houses.  After  a  pious  life  she  was  buried  at 
Eichstatt,  where  it  is  said  a  healing  oil 
trickled  from  her  rock-tomb.  This  miracle 
reminded  men  of  the  fruitful  dew  which  fell 
from  the  manes  of  the  Valkyries'  horses,  and 
when  one  of  the  days  sacred  to  her  came  on 
May  first,  the  wedding-day  of  Frau  Holda  and 
the  sun-god,  the  people  thought  of  her  as  a 
Valkyrie,  and  identified  her  with  Holda. 
As,  like  a  Valkyrie,  she  rode  armed  on  her 
steed,  she  scattered,  like  Holda,  spring  flowers 
and  fruitful  dew  upon  the  fields  and  vales. 
When  these  deities  fell  into  disrepute,  Wal- 
purga too  joined  the  pagan  train  that  swept 

the  sky  on   the  eve  of  May  first,  and  met 

136 


WALPURGIS  NIGHT         137 

afterwards  on  mountain-tops  to  sacrifice  and 
to  adore  Holda,  as  the  priests  had  sacrificed 
for  a  prosperous  season  and  a  bountiful  har- 
vest. 

So  this  night  was  called  Walpurgis  Night, 
when  evil  beings  were  abroad,  and  with  them 
human  worshippers  who  still  guarded  the  old 
faith  in  secret. 

This  is  very  like  the  occasion  of  November 
Eve,  which  shared  with  May  first  Celtic  man- 
ifestations of  evil.  Witches  complete  the  list 
of  supernatural  beings  which  are  out  on  Hal- 
lowe'en. All  are  to  be  met  at  crossroads,  with 
harm  to  the  beholders.  A  superstition  goes, 
that  if  one  wishes  to  see  witches,  he  must  put 
on  his  clothes  wrong  side  out,  and  creep  back- 
ward to  a  crossroads,  or  wear  wild  radish,  on 
May  Eve. 

On  Walpurgis  Night  precaution  must  be 
taken  against  witches  who  may  harm  cattle. 
The  stable  doors  are  locked  and  sealed  with 
three  crosses.  Sprigs  of  ash,  hawthorn,  juni- 
per, and  elder,  once  sacred  to  the  pagan  gods, 
are   now  used  as  a  protection  against  them. 


138  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

Horseshoes  are  nailed  prongs  up  on  the 
threshold  or  over  the  door.  Holy  bells  are 
hung  on  the  cows  to  scare  away  the  witches, 
and  they  are  guided  to  pasture  by  a  goad 
which  has  been  blessed.  Shots  are  fired  over 
the  cornfield.  If  one  wishes,  he  may  hide  in 
the  corn  and  hear  what  will  happen  for  a 
year. 

Signs  and  omens  on  Walpurgis  Night  have 
more  weight  than  at  other  times  except  on  St. 
John's  Day. 

"  On  Walpurgis  Night  rain 
Makes  good  crops  of  autumn  grain/* 

but  rain  on  May  Day  is  harmful  to  them. 

Lovers  try  omens  on  this  eve,  as  they  do  in 
Scotland  on  Hallowe'en.  If  you  sleep  with 
one  stocking  on,  you  will  find  on  May  morn- 
ing in  the  toe  a  hair  the  color  of  your  sweet- 
heart's. Girls  try  to  find  out  the  tempera- 
ment of  their  husbands- to-be  by  keeping  a 
linen  thread  for  three  days  near  an  image  of 
the  Madonna,  and  at  midnight  on  May  Eve 
pulling  it  apart,  saying : 


The  Witches'  Dance  (Valpurgisnacht.) 
From  Painting  by  Von  Kreling. 


WALPURGIS  NIGHT         139 

"  Thread,  I  pull  thee ; 
Walpurga,  I  pray  thee, 
That  thou  show  to  me 
What  my  husband's  like  to  be." 

They  judge  of  his  disposition  by  the  thread's 
being  strong  or  easily  broken,  soft  or  tightly 
woven. 

Dew  on  the  morning  of  May  first  makes 
girls  who  wash  in  it  beautiful. 

"  The  fair  maid  who  on  the  first  of  May 
Goes  to  the  fields  at  break  of  day 

And  washes  in  dew  from  the  hawthorn 

tree 
"Will  ever  after  handsome  be." 

Encyclopedia  of  Superstitions. 

A  heavy  dew  on  this  morning  presages  a  good 
"  butter-year."     You  will  find  fateful  initials 
printed  in  dew  on   a  handkerchief  that  has 
been  left  out  all  the  night  of  April  thirtieth. 
On  May  Day  girls  invoke  the  cuckoo : 

"  Cuckoo  !  cuckoo  !  on  the  bough, 
Tell  me  truly,  tell  me  how 
Many  years  there  will  be 
Till  a  husband  comes  to  me.** 


140  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

Then  they  count  the  calls  of  the  cuckoo  until 
he  pauses  again. 

If  a  man  wears  clothes  made  of  yarn  spun 
on  Walpurgis  Night  to  the  May-shooting,  he 
will  always  hit  the  bull's-eye,  for  the  Devil 
gives  away  to  those  he  favors,  "  freikugeln," 
bullets  which  always  hit  the  mark. 

On  Walpurgis  Night  as  on  Hallowe'en 
strange  things  may  happen  to  one.  Zschokke 
tells  a  story  of  a  Walpurgis  Night  dream  that 
is  more  a  vision  than  a  dream.  Led  to  be 
unfaithful  to  his  wife,  a  man  murders  the 
husband  of  a  former  sweetheart ;  to  escape 
capture  he  fires  a  haystack,  from  which  a 
whole  village  is  kindled.  In  his  flight  he 
enters  an  empty  carriage,  and  drives  away 
madly,  crushing  the  owner  under  the  wheels. 
He  finds  that  the  dead  man  is  his  own  brother. 
Faced  by  the  person  whom  he  believes  to  be 
the  Devil,  responsible  for  his  misfortunes,  the 
wretched  man  is  ready  to  worship  him  if  he 
will  protect  him.  He  finds  that  the  seeming 
Devil  is  in  reality  his  guardian-angel  who 
sent  him  this  dream  that  he  might  learn  the 


WALPURGIS  NIGHT         141 

depths  of  wickedness  lying  unfathomed  in  his 
heart,  waiting  an  opportunity  to  burst  out. 

Both  May  Eve  and  St.  John's  Eve  are  times 
of  freedom  and  unrestraint.  People  are  filled 
with  a  sort  of  madness  which  makes  them 
unaccountable  for  their  deeds. 

"  For  you  see,  pastor,  within  every  one  of  us 
a  spark  of  paganism  is  glowing.  It  has  out- 
lasted the  thousand  years  since  the  old  Teutonic 
times.  Once  a  year  it  flames  up  high,  and  we 
call  it  St.  John's  Fire.  Once  a  year  comes  Free- 
night.  Yes,  truly,  Free-night.  Then  the  witches, 
laughing  scornfully,  ride  to  Blocksberg,  upon 
the  mountain-top,  on  their  broomsticks,  the 
same  broomsticks  with  which  at  other  times 
their  witchcraft  is  whipped  out  of  them,— then 
the  whole  wild  company  skims  along  the  forest 
way, — and  then  the  wild  desires  awaken  in  our 
hearts  which  life  has  not  fulfilled.'' 

SUDEBMANN :  St.  John^s  Fire.    (Porter  trans.) 


CHAPTER  XIV 

MORE  HALLOWTIDE  BELIEFS  AND 
CUSTOMS 

Only  the  Celts  and  the  Teutons  celebrate 
an  occasion  actually  like  our  Hallowe'en. 
The  countries  of  southern  Europe  make  of  it 
a  religious  vigil,  like  that  already  described 
in  France. 

In  Italy  on  the  night  of  All  Souls',  the 
spirits  of  the  dead  are  thought  to  be  abroad, 
as  in  Brittany.  They  may  mingle  with  liv- 
ing people,  and  not  be  remarked.  The 
Miserere  is  heard  in  all  the  cities.  As  the 
people  pass  dressed  in  black,  bells  are  rung 
on  street  corners  to  remind  them  to  pray  for 
the  souls  of  the  dead.  In  Naples  the  skeletons 
in  the  funeral  vaults  are  dressed  up,  and  the 
place  visited  on  All  Souls'  Day.     In  Salerno 

before  the  people  go  to  the  all-night  service  at 

142 


BELIEFS  AND  CUSTOMS      143 

church  they  set  out  a  banquet  for  the  dead. 
If  any  food  is  left  in  the  morning,  evil  is  in 
store  for  the  house. 

"  Hark !    Hark  to  the  wind !    'T  is  the  night, 
they  say, 
When  all  souls  come  back  from  the  far  away — 
The  dead,  forgotten  this  many  a  day  I 

"And  the  dead  remembered — ay!   long  and 
well  — 
And  the  little  children  whose  spirits  dwell 
In  God's  green  garden  of  asphodel. 

"  Have  you  reached  the  country  of  all  content, 
O  souls  we  know,  since  the  day  you  went 
From  this  time-worn  world,  where  your  years 
were  spent  ? 

"  Would  you  come  back  to  the  sun  and  the  rain. 
The  sweetness,  the  strife,  the  thing  we  call 

pain, 
And  then  unravel  life's  tangle  again  ? 

"  I  lean  to  the  dark— Hush ! — was  it  a  sigh  ? 
Or  the  painted  vine-leaves  that  rustled  by  ? 
Or  only  a  night-bird's  echoing  cry  ?  " 

Sheabd  :  Hallowe'en. 


144  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

In  Malta  bells  are  rung,  prayers  said,  and 
mourning  worn  on  All  Souls'  Day.  Graves 
are  decorated,  and  the  inscriptions  on  tombs 
read  and  reread.  For  the  poor  is  prepared  an 
All  Souls*  dinner,  as  cakes  are  given  to  the 
poor  in  England  and  Wales.  The  custom  of 
decorating  graves  with  flowers  and  offering 
flowers  to  the  dead  comes  from  the  crowning 
of  the  dead  by  the  ancients  with  short-lived 
blooms,  to  signify  the  brevity  of  life. 

In  Spain  at  dark  on  Hallowe'en  cakes  and 
nuts  are  laid  on  graves  to  bribe  the  spirits  not 
to  disturb  the  vigils  of  the  saints. 

In  Germany  the  graves  of  the  dead  are 
decorated  with  flowers  and  lights,  on  the  first 
and  second  of  November.  To  drive  away 
ghosts  from  a  church  a  key  or  a  wand  must 
be  struck  three  times  against  a  bier.  An  All 
Souls'  divination  in  Germany  is  a  girl's  going 
out  and  asking  the  first  young  man  she  meets 
his  name.  Her  husband's  will  be  like  it.  If 
she  walks  thrice  about  a  church  and  makes  a 
wish,  she  will  see  it  fulfilled. 

Belgian  children  build  shrines  in  front  of 


BELIEFS  AND  CUSTOMS      145 

their  homes  with  figures  of  the  Madonna  and 
candles,  and  beg  for  money  to  buy  cakes.  As 
many  cakes  as  one  eats,  so  many  souls  he 
frees  from  Purgatory. 

The  races  of  northern  Europe  believed  that 
the  dead  returned,  and  were  grieved  at  the 
lamentations  of  their  living  relatives.  The 
same  belief  was  found  in  Brittany,  and  among 
the  American  Indians. 

"  Think  of  this,  O  Hiawatha  I 
Speak  of  it  to  all  the  people, 
That  henceforward  and  forever 
They  no  more  with  lamentations 
Sadden  souls  of  the  departed 
In  the  Islands  of  the  Blessed." 

Longfellow  :  Hiawatha. 

The  Chinese  fear  the  dead  and  the  dragons 
of  the  air.  They  devote  the  first  three  weeks 
in  April  to  visiting  the  graves  of  their  an- 
cestors, and  laying  baskets  of  offerings  on 
them.  The  great  dragon,  Feng-Shin,  flies 
scattering  blessings  upon  the  houses.  His 
path  is  straight,  unless  he  meets  with  some 
building.     Then    he    turns    aside,   and    the 


146  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

owner    of   the  too  lofty   edifice  misses   the 
blessing. 

At  Nikko,  Japan,  where  there  are  many 
shrines  to  the  spirits  of  the  dead,  masques  are 
held  to  entertain  the  ghosts  who  return  on 
Midsummer  Day.  Every  street  is  lined  with 
lighted  lanterns,  and  the  spirits  are  sent  back 
to  the  otherworld  in  straw  boats  lit  with 
lanterns,  and  floated  down  the  river.  To  see 
ghosts  in  Japan  one  must  put  one  hundred 
rush-lights  into  a  large  lantern,  and  repeat 
one  hundred  lines  of  poetry,  taking  one  light 
out  at  the  end  of  each  line ;  or  go  out  into 
the  dark  with  one  light  and  blow  it  out. 
Ghosts  are  identified  with  witches.  They 
come  back  especially  on  moonlit  nights. 

"  On  moonlight  nights,  when  the  coast-wind 
whispers  in  the  branches  of  the  tree,  O-Matsue 
and  Teoyo  may  sometimes  be  seen,  with  bamboo 
rakes  in  their  hands,  gathering  together  the 
needles  of  the  fir." 

EiNDEE  :  Great  Mr  Tree  of  Tdkaaago. 

There  is  a  Chinese  saying  that  a  mirror  is 


BELIEFS  AND  CUSTOMS      147 

the  soul  of  a  woman.  A  pretty  story  is  told 
of  a  girl  whose  mother  before  she  died  gave 
her  a  mirror,  saying  : 

"  Now  after  I  am  dead,  if  you  think  long- 
ingly of  me,  take  out  the  thing  that  you 
will  find  inside  this  box,  and  look  at  it. 
When  you  do  so  my  spirit  will  meet  yours, 
and  you  will  be  comforted."  When  she  was 
lonely  or  her  stepmother  was  harsh  with  her, 
the  girl  went  to  her  room  and  looked  ear- 
nestly into  the  mirror.  She  saw  there  only 
her  own  face,  but  it  was  so  much  like  her 
mother's  that  she  believed  it  was  hers  indeed, 
and  was  consoled.  When  the  stepmother 
learned  what  it  was  her  daughter  cherished 
so  closely,  her  heart  softened  toward  the 
lonely  girl,  and  her  life  was  made  easier. 

By  the  Arabs  spirits  were  called  Djinns  (or 
genii).  They  came  from  fire,  and  looked 
like  men  or  beasts.  They  might  be  good  or 
evil,  beautiful  or  horrible,  and  could  disappear 
from  mortal  sight  at  will.  Nights  when  they 
were  abroad,  it  behooved  men  to  stay  under 
cover. 


148  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  Ha !    They  are  on  us,  close  without  I 
Shut  tight  the  shelter  where  we  lie ; 
With  hideous  din  the  monster  rout, 
Dragon  and  vampire,  fill  the  sky." 

Hugo  :  The  Djirms, 


¥ 


HALLOWE'EN:  nr  AMERICA 

In  Colonial  days  Hallowe^en  was  not  cele*^ 
brated  much  in  America.    Some  English  still 
kept  the  customs,  of  the^r  old  world,  stich*;  as -• 
apple-ducking  and  snapping,  and  girla  triedv 
the  apple-paring  charm  to  reveal  their  lovers*- 
initials,  and  the  comb-and-mirror  test  to  see 
their  faces. .  Ballads   were  sung  and  ghosU 
stories  told,  for  the  dead  were  thought  to  re- 
turn on  Hallowe'en.  'S-  ^■ 


;   *^  There  was  a?  young  officer  in  Phip^s  ooicr 
pany  at  the  time  of  the  findiT)g  of  the  Spanish; 
treaaure-fiiiipy  who  had  gone  mad  at  the  sight:of  > 
the  borsting  sacks  that-  the  direis  had  broDght . 
up  from  the  se%  as- the  gold  cdns  covered  thc^ 
deck.    Tills  man  had  once  lived  in  the  old  stone 
hoQse  on  the^^faire  greene  lane^'  and  a  report 
had  gone  ont?  tha^'his  spirit.  stilX  vxsited  it^  and 
caused  discordant  noises.    Oncev\    .    ,    ona. 
gusty  Novemb*^?  evening,  when  the  clouds  were 
scudding  over  the  moon,  a  hall-door  had  blown 
149 


icovTHB  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

-»■  '.    •"*.l''"   *"    ■■"   ",   "-'V*''        •  "  '-J-:*'/ 

open  with  a  ahriekiiig  draft  and  a  force  that 
caused  the  floor  to  tremble." 

BOTTERWOBTE' :  SoMoiDe'en  Beformation. 

Elvee;  f goblins^  and  fairiea  are  native  on. 
American  soiL    The  Indians  believed  inei 
manUouSy  some  of  whom  were  water-goda  wl 
exacted  tribate  from  all  who  passed  overthei 
lakes^v'  Henrys  Hadson^^  and    his    felloV-ei^j^ 
plorers  haunted  as  monntain-troils  the  Cata^> 
kill  range.     Like  Oasian  and  so  many  other^:^' 
visitors  to  the  Otherworld,  Rip  Van  Winkle  i^ 
is  lured  into  the  strange  gathering,  thinkr*^; 
that  he  passes  the  night  there,  wakes,  and  r 
goe».  home  to  find  that  twenty  years  have  - 
whitened;^^^  his  ^  hair,;  rusted'  his    gun,   and 
snatched  from  life  tnany  of  hia  boon-com> 
p&nions.^;;;;,;^; .  -  •;'^:\      ■;;•.;;'•  ■ 

"•Mjgan  most  hare  cotched  the  rhenmatix 
tooL    Now  that^»  too  bad.    Them  feilowB  haTS. 
^ne  and  stolen  my  good  gon,  and  leaverliie  this 
'  rusty  old  barr^ 

"Why,  is  that  the  village  of  Falling  "Waters 
that  1 366  ?  Why,  the  plaoe  is^  more  than  twica 
*  the  size  it  was  last  night — ^I '  -        "•' 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    151 

"  I  don't  know  whether  I  am  dreaming,  or 
sleeping,  or  waking." 

Jeffeeson  :  Bip  Van  WinJde. 

The  persecution  of  witches,  prevalent  in 
Europe,  reached  this  side  of  the  Atlantic  in 
the  seventeenth  century. 

"  This  sudden  burst  of  wickedness  and  crime 
Was  but  the  common  madness  of  the  time, 
When  in  all  lands,  that  lie  within  the  sound 
Of  Sabbath  bells,  a  witch  was  burned  or  drowned." 

Longfellow  :   Giles  Corey  of  the  Salem  Farms. 

Men  and  women  who  had  enemies  to  accuse 
them  of  evil  knowledge  and  the  power  to 
cause  illness  in  others,  were  hanged  or  pressed 
to  death  by  heavy  weights.  Such  sicknesses 
they  could  cause  by  keeping  a  waxen  image, 
and  sticking  pins  or  nails  into  it,  or  melting 
it  before  the  fire.  The  person  whom  they 
hated  would  be  in  torture,  or  would  waste 
away  like  the  waxen  doll.  Witches'  power 
to  injure  and  to  prophesy  came  from  the 
Devil,  who  marked  them  with  a  needle-prick. 
Such  marks  were  sought  as  evidence  at  trials. 


152  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

"  Witches'  eyes  are  coals  of  fire  from  the  pit." 
They  were  attended  by  black  cats,  owls,  bats, 
and  toads. 

Iron,  as  being  a  product  of  fire,  was  a  pro- 
tection against  them,  as  against  evil  spirits 
everywhere.  It  had  especial  power  when  in 
the  shape  of  a  horseshoe. 

"  This  horseshoe  will  I  nail  upon  the  threshold. 
There,  ye  night-hags  and  witches  that  torment 
The  neighborhood,  ye  shall  not  enter  here." 

Longfellow  :   Giles  Corey  of  the  Salem  Farms. 

The  holiday-time  of  elves,  witches,  and 
ghosts  is  Hallowe'en.  It  is  not  believed  in 
here  except  by  some  children,  who  people  the 
dark  with  bogies  who  will  carry  them  away 
if  they  are  naughty. 

"  Onc't  they  was  a  little  boy  wouldn't  say  his 
prayers  — 

An'  when  he  went  to  bed  at  night,  away  up- 
stairs, 

His  mammy  heerd  him  holler,  an'  his  daddy 
heerd  him  bawl, 

An'  when  they  tum't  the  kivvers  down,  he 
wasn't  there  at  all ! 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    15^ 

An'  they  seeked  him  in  the  rafter-room,  an' 

cubby-hole,  an'  press, 
An'  seeked  him  up  the  chimbley-flue,  an'  ever'- 

wheres,  I  guess ; 
But  all  they  ever  found  was  thist  his  pants  an' 

roundabout ! 
An'  the  Gobble-uns  '11  git  you,  ef  you  don't 

watch  out ! " 

KiLEY  :  Little  Orphcmt  Annie. 

Negroes  are  very  superstitious,  putting  faith 
in  all  sorts  of  supernatural  beings. 

"  Blame  my  trap !  how  de  wind  do  blow ; 
And  dis  is  das  de  night  for  de  witches,  sho ! 
Dey's  trouble  going  to  waste  when  de  ole 

slut  whine, 
An'  you  hear  de  cat  a-spittin'  when  de  moon 
don't  shine." 

ElLET  :  When  de  Folks  is  Gone. 

While  the  original  customs  of  Hallowe'en 
are  being  forgotten  more  and  more  across  the 
ocean,  Americans  have  fostered  them,  and  are 
making  this  an  occasion  something  like  what 
it  must  have  been  in  its  best  days  overseas. 
All  Hallowe'en  customs  in  the  United  States 
are  borrowed  directly  or  adapted  from  those 


154  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

of  other  countries.  All  superstitions,  every- 
day ones,  and  those  pertaining  to  Christmas 
and  New  Year's,  have  special  value  on  Hal- 
lowe'en. 

It  is  a  night  of  ghostly  and  merry  revelry. 
Mischievous  spirits  choose  it  for  carrying  off 
gates  and  other  objects,  and  hiding  them  or 
putting  them  out  of  reach. 

"  Dear  me,  Polly,  I  wonder  what  them  boys 
will  be  up  to  to-night.    I  do  hope  they'll  not  put 
the  gate  up  on  the  shed  as  they  did  last  year." 
Wright  :  Tom^a  Hallotoe'en  Joke. 

Bags  filled  with  flour  sprinkle  the  passers-by. 
Door-bells  are  rung  and  mysterious  raps 
sounded  on  doors,  things  thrown  into  halls, 
and  knobs  stolen.  Such  sports  mean  no  more 
at  Hallowe'en  than  the  tricks  played  the 
night  before  the  Fourth  of  July  have  to  do 
with  the  Declaration  of  Independence.  We 
see  manifested  on  all  such  occasions  the  spirit 
of  "  Free-night "  of  which  George  von  Hart- 
wig  speaks  so  enthusiastically  in  St.  John's 
Fire  (page  141)/ 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    155 

Hallowe'en  parties  are  the  real  survival  of 
the  ancient  merrymakings.  They  are  pre- 
pared for  in  secret.  Guests  are  not  to  divulge 
the  fact  that  they  are  invited.  Often  they 
come  masked,  as  ghosts  or  witches. 

The  decorations  make  plain  the  two  ele- 
ments of  the  festival.  For  the  centerpiece  of 
the  table  there  may  be  a  hollowed  pumpkin, 
filled  with  apples  and  nuts  and  other  fruits  of 
harvest,  or  a  pumpkin-chariot  drawn  by  field- 
mice.  So  it  is  clear  that  this  is  a  harvest- 
party,  like  Pomona's  feast.  In  the  coach  rides 
a  witch,  representing  the  other  element,  of 
magic  and  prophecy.  Jack-o'-lanterns,  with 
which  the  room  is  lighted,  are  hollowed 
pumpkins  with  candles  inside.  The  candle- 
light shines  through  holes  cut  like  features. 
So  the  lantern  becomes  a  bogy,  and  is  held  up 
at  a  window  to  frighten  those  inside.  Corn- 
stalks from  the  garden  stand  in  clumps  about 
the  room.  A  frieze  of  witches  on  broom- 
sticks, with  cats,  bats,  and  owls  surmounts  the 
fireplace,  perhaps.  A  full  moon  shines  over 
all,  and  a  caldron  on  a  tripod  holds  fortunes 


156  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

tied  in  nut-shells.  The  prevailing  colors  are 
yellow  and  black  :  a  deep  yellow  is  the  color 
of  most  ripe  grain  and  fruit ;  black  stands  for 
black  magic  and  demoniac  influence.  Ghosts 
and  skulls  and  cross-bpnes,  symbols  of  death, 
startle  the  beholder.;  Since  Hallowe'en  is  a 
time  for  lovers  to  learn  their  fate,  hearts  and 
other  sentimental  tokens  are  used  to  good 
effect,  as  the  Scotch  lads  of  Burns's  time  wore 
love-knots. 

Having  marched  to  the  dining-room  to  the 
time  of  a  dirge,  the  guests  find  before  them 
plain,  hearty  fare ;  doughnuts,  gingerbread, 
cider,  popcorn,  apples,  and  nuts  honored  by 
time.  The  Hallowe'en  cake  has  held  the 
place  of  honor  since  the  beginning  here  in 
America.  A  ring,  key,  thimble,  penny,  and 
button  baked  in  it  foretell  respectively  speedy 
marriage,  a  journey,  spinsterhood,  wealth, 
and  bachelorhood. 

"  Polly  was  going  to  be  married,  Jennie  was 
going  on  a  long  journey,  and  you — down  went 
the  knife  against  something  hard.  The  girls 
crowded  round.     You  had  a  hurt  in  your  throat, 


A  Witch  Table. 


An  Owl  Table. 
Hallowe'en  Tables,  I. 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    157 

and  there,  there,  in  your  slice,  was  the  horrid, 

hateful,  big  brass  thimble.     It  was  more  than 

you  could  bear — soaking,  dripping  wet,  and  an 

old  maid ! " 

Bbadley:  Different  Party. 


The  kitchen  is  the  best  place  for  the  rough 
games  and  after-supper  charms. 

On  the  stems  of  the  apples  which  are  to  be 
dipped  for  may  be  tied  names ;  for  the  boys 
in  one  tub,  for  the  girls  in  another.  Each 
searcher  of  the  future  must  draw  out  with  his 
teeth  an  apple  with  a  name  which  will  be 
like  that  of  his  future  mate. 

A  variation  of  the  Irish  snap-apple  is  a 
hoop  hung  by  strings  from  the  ceiling,  round 
which  at  intervals  are  placed  bread,  apples, 
cakes,  peppers,  candies,  and  candles.  The 
strings  are  twisted,  then  let  go,  and  as  the 
hoop  revolves,  each  may  step  up  and  get  a 
bite  from  whatever  comes  to  him.  By  the 
taste  he  determines  what  the  character  of  his 
married  life  will  be, — whether  wholesome, 
acid,  soft,  fiery,  or  sweet.  Whoever  bites  the 
candle  is  twice  unfortunate,  for  he  must  pay 


158  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

a  forfeit  too.  An  apple  and  a  bag  of  flour  are 
placed  on  the  ends  of  a  stick,  and  whoever 
dares  to  seize  a  mouthful  of  apple  must  risk 
being  blinded  by  flour.  Apples  are  suspended 
one  to  a  string  in  a  doorway.  As  they  swing, 
each  guest  tries  to  secure  his  apple.  To  blow 
out  a  candle  as  it  revolves  on  a  stick  requires 
attention  and  accuracy  of  aim. 

The  one  who  first  succeeds  in  threading  a 
needle  as  he  sits  on  a  round  bottle  on  the 
floor,  will  be  first  married.  Twelve  candles 
are  lighted,  and  placed  at  convenient  distances 
on  the  floor  in  a  row.  As  the  guest  leaps 
over  them,  the  first  he  blows  out  will  indicate 
his  wedding-month.  One  candle  only  placed 
on  the  fioor  and  blown  out  in  the  same  way 
means  a  year  of  wretchedness  ahead.  If  it 
still  burns,  it  presages  a  year  of  joy. 

Among  the  quieter  tests  some  of  the  most 
common  are  tried  with  apple-seeds.  As  in 
England  a  pair  of  seeds  named  for  two  lovers 
are  stuck  on  brow  or  eyelids.  The  one  who 
sticks  longer  is  the  true,  the  one  who  soon 
falls,  the  disloyal  sweetheart.     Seeds  are  used 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    159 

in  this  way  to  tell  aleo  whether  one  is  to  be 
a  traveler  or  a  stay-at-home.  Apple-seeds  are 
twice  ominous,  partaking  of  both  apple  and 
nut  nature.  Even  the  number  of  seeds  found 
in  a  core  has  meaning.  If  you  put  them 
upon  the  palm  of  your  hand,  and  strike  it 
with  the  other,  the  number  remaining  will 
tell  you  how  many  letters  you  will  receive  in 
a  fortnight.  With  twelve  seeds  and  the 
names  of  twelve  friends,  the  old  rhyme  may 
be  repeated : 

"  One  I  love, 
Two  I  love, 
Three  I  love,  I  say ; 
Four  I  love  with  all  my  heart : 
Five  I  cast  away. 
Six  he  loves, 
Seven  she  loves, 
Eight  they  both  love ; 
Nine  he  comes. 
Ten  he  tarries, 
Eleven  he  courts,  and 
Twelve  he  marries." 

Nuts  are  burned  in  the  open  fire.     It  is  gen- 


i6o  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

erally  agreed  that  the  one  for  whom  the  first 
that  pops  is  named,  loves. 

"  If  he  loves  me,  pop  and  fly ; 
If  he  hates  me,  live  and  die." 

Often  the  superstition  connected  therewith  is 
forgotten  in  the  excitement  of  the  moment. 

"  When  ebery  one  among  us  toe  de  smallest  picka- 
ninny 
Would  huddle  in  de  chimbley  cohnah's  glow, 
Toe  listen  toe  dem  chOly  win's  ob  ole  Novem- 

bah's 
Go  a-screechin'  lack  a  spook  around  de  huts, 
'Twell  de  pickaninnies'  fingahs  gits  to  shakin' 

o'er  de  embahs, 
An'  dey  laik  ter  roas'  dey  knuckles  *stead  o* 
nuts." 

In  Weenee's  Readings^  Number  31. 

Letters  of  the  alphabet  are  carved  on  a 
pumpkin.  Fate  guides  the  hand  of  the  blind- 
folded seeker  to  the  fateful  initial  which  he 
stabs  with  a  pin.  Letters  cut  out  of  paper 
are  sprinkled  on  water  in  a  tub.  They  form 
groups  from  which  any  one  with  imagination 
may  spell  out  names. 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    i6i 

Girls  walk  down  cellar  backward  with  a 
caudle  in  one  hand  and  a  looking-glass  in  the 
other,  expecting  to  see  a  face  in  the  glass. 

"  Last  night 't  was  witching  Hallowe'en, 
Dearest ;  an  apple  russet-brown 
I  pared,  and  thrice  above  my  crown 
Whirled  the  long  skin  ;  they  watched  it  keen ; 
I  flung  it  far  ;  they  laughed  and  cried 

me  shame  — 
Dearest,  there  lay  the  letter  of  your  name. 

"  Took  I  the  mirror  then,  and  crept 

Down,  down  the  creaking  narrow  stair ; 
The  milk-pans  caught  my  candle's  flare 
And  mice  walked  soft  and  spiders  slept. 

I  spoke  the  spell,  and  stood  the  magic  space, 
Dearest — and  in  the  glass  I  saw  your  face ! 

"  And  then  I  stole  out  in  the  night 

Alone ;  the  frogs  piped  sweet  and  loud, 
The  moon  looked  through  a  ragged  cloud. 
Thrice  round  the  house  I  sped  me  light. 

Dearest ;  and  there,  methought — charm  of 

my  charms ! 
You  met  me,  kissed  me,  took  me  to  your 
arms ! " 

Opper  :  The  Ckaiim. 


1 62  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

There  are  many  mirror-tests.  A  girl  who 
sits  before  a  mirror  at  midnight  on  Hallowe'en 
combing  her  hair  and  eating  an  apple  will  see 
the  face  of  her  true  love  reflected  in  the  glass. 
Standing  so  that  through  a  window  she  may 
see  the  moon  in  a  glass  she  holds,  she  counts 
the  number  of  reflections  to  find  out  how 
many  pleasant  things  will  happen  to  her  in 
the  next  twelve  months.  Alabama  has  taken 
over  the  Scotch  mirror  test  in  its  entirety. 

A  girl  with  a  looking-glass  in  her  hand 
steps  backward  from  the  door  out  into  the 
yard.     Saying : 

"  Bound  and  round,  O  stars  so  fair ! 
Ye  travel,  and  search  out  everywhere. 
I  pray  you,  sweet  stars,  now  show  to  me, 
This  night,  who  my  future  husband  shall  be  1 " 

she  goes  to  meet  her  fate. 

"  So  Leshe  backed  out  at  the  door,  and  we 
shut  it  upon  her.  The  instant  after,  we  heard  a 
great  laugh.  Off  the  piazza  she  had  stepped 
backward  directly  against  two  gentlemen  com- 
ing in. 

"  Doctor  Ingleside  was  one,  coming  to  get  his 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    163 

supper ;  the  other  was  a  friend  of  his.  .  .  . 
'Doctor  John  Hautayne,'  he  said,  introducing 
him  by  his  full  name." 

Whitney  :  We  Girls. 

A  oustom  that  is  a  reminder  of  the  lighted 
boats  sent  down-stream  in  Japan  to  bear  away 
the  souls  of  the  dead,  is  that  which  makes  use 
of  nut-shell  boats.  These  have  tiny  candles 
fastened  in  them,  are  lighted,  and  named,  and 
set  adrift  on  a  tub  of  water.  If  they  cling  to 
the  side,  their  namesakes  will  lead  a  quiet 
life.  Some  will  float  together.  Some  will 
collide  and  be  shipwrecked.  Others  will  bear 
steadily  toward  a  goal  though  the  waves  are 
rocked  in  a  tempest.  Their  behavior  is 
significant.  The  candle  which  burns  longest 
belongs  to  the  one  who  will  marry  first. 

The  Midsummer  wheel  which  was  rolled 
down  into  the  Moselle  River  in  France,  and 
meant,  if  the  flames  that  wreathed  it  were  not 
extinguished,  that  the  grape-harvest  would  be 
abundant,  has  survived  in  the  fortune  wheel 
which  is  rolled  about  from  one  guest  to  an- 
other, and  brings  a  gift  to  each. 


1 64  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

The  actions  of  cats  on  Hallowe'en  betoken 
good  or  bad  luck.  If  a  cat  sits  quietly  beside 
any  one,  he  will  enjoy  a  peaceful,  prosperous 
life ;  if  one  rubs  against  him,  it  brings  good 
luck,  doubly  good  if  one  jumps  into  his 
lap.  If  a  cat  yawns  near  you  on  Hal- 
lowe'en, be  alert  and  do  not  let  opportunity 
slip  by  you.  If  a  cat  runs  from  you,  you 
have  a  secret  which  will  be  revealed  in  seven 
days. 

Different  states  have  put  interpretations  of 
their  own  on  the  commonest  charms.  In 
Massachusetts  the  one  who  first  draws  an 
apple  from  the  tub  with  his  teeth  will  be  first 
married.  If  a  girl  steals  a  cabbage,  she  will 
see  her  future  husband  as  she  pulls  it  up,  or 
meet  him  as  she  goes  home.  If  these  fail,  she 
must  put  the  cabbage  over  the  door  and 
watch  to  see  whom  it  falls  on,  for  him  she  is 
to  marry.  A  button  concealed  in  mashed 
potato  brings  misfortune  to  the  finder.  The 
names  of  three  men  are  written  on  slips  of 
paper,  and  enclosed  in  three  balls  of  meal. 
The    one    that    rises    first    when    they    are 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    165 

thrown  into  water  will  disclose  the  soaght-for 
name. 

Maine  has  borrowed  the  yarn-test  from 
Scotland.  A  ball  is  thrown  into  a  barn  or 
cellar,  and  wound  off  on  the  hand.  The 
lover  will  come  and  help  to  wind.  Girls  in 
New  Hampshire  place  in  a  row  three  dishes 
with  earth,  water,  and  a  ring  in  them,  re- 
spectively. The  one  who  blindfolded  touches 
earth  will  soon  die ;  water,  will  never  mirry ; 
the  ring,  will  soon  be  wedded. 

To  dream  of  the  future  on  Hallowe'en  in 
Pennsylvania,  one  must  go  out  of  the  front 
door  backwaTd,  pick  up  dust  or  grass,  wrap 
it  in  paper,  and  put  it  under  his  pillow. 

In  Maryland  girls  see  their  future  husbands 
by  a  rite  similar  to  the  Scotch  "  wetting  of  the 
sark-sleeve."  They  put  an  egg  to  roast,  and 
open  wide  all  the  doors  and  windows.  The 
man  they  seek  will  come  in  and  turn  the  egg. 
At  supper  girls  stand  behind  the  chairs,  know- 
ing that  the  ones  they  are  to  marry  will  come 
to  sit  in  front  of  them. 

The  South  has  always  been  famous  for  its 


1 66  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

hospitality  and  good  times.  On  Hallowe'en  a 
miniature  Druid-fire  burns  in  a  bowl  on  the 
table.  In  the  blazing  alcohol  are  put  fortunes 
wrapped  in  tin-foil,  figs,  orange-peel,  raisins, 
almonds,  and  dates.  The  one  who  snatches 
the  best  will  meet  his  sweetheart  inside  of  a 
year,  and  all  may  try  for  a  fortune  from  the 
flames.  The  origin  of  this  custom  was  the 
taking  of  omens  from  the  death-struggles  of 
creatures  burning  in  the  fire  of  sacrifice. 

Another  Southern  custom  is  adapted  from 
one  of  Brittany.  Needles  are  named  and 
floated  in  a  dish  of  water.  Those  which  cling 
side  by  side  are  lovers. 

Good  fortune  is  in  store  for  the  one  who 
wins  an  apple  from  the  tub,  or  against  whose 
glass  a  ring  suspended  by  a  hair  strikes  with 
a  sharp  chime. 

A  very  elaborate  charm  is  tried  in  New- 
foundland. As  the  clock  strikes  midnight  a 
girl  puts  the  twenty-six  letters  of  the  alphabet, 
cut  from  paper,  into  a  pure-white  bowl  which 
has  been  touched  by  the  lips  of  a  new-born 
babe  only.     After  saying  : 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    167 

"  Kind  fortune,  tell  me  where  is  he 
Who  my  future  lord  shall  be  ; 
From  this  bowl  all  that  I  claim 
Is  to  know  my  sweetheart's  name." 

she  puts  the  bowl  into  a  safe  place  until  morn- 
ing. Then  she  is  blindfolded  and  picks  out 
the  same  number  of  letters  as  there  are  in  her 
own  name,  and  spells  another  from  them. 

In  New  Brunswick,  instead  of  an  apple,  a 
hard-boiled  egg  without  salt  is  eaten  before  a 
mirror,  with  the  same  result.  In  Canada  a 
thread  is  held  over  a  lamp.  The  number 
that  can  be  counted  slowly  before  the  thread 
parts,  is  the  number  of  years  before  the  one 
who  counts  will  marry. 

In  the  United  States  a  hair  is  thrown  to  the 
winds  with  the  stanza  chanted  : 

"  I  pluck  this  lock  of  hair  oflP  my  head 
To  tell  whence  comes  the  one  I  shall  wed. 
Fly,  silken  hair,  fly  all  the  world  around, 
Until  you  reach  the  spot  where  my  true  love 
is  found." 

The  direction  in  which  the  hair  floats  is 
prophetic. 


1 68  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

The  taste  in  Hallowe'en  festivities  now  is  to 
study  old  traditions,  and  hold  a  Scotch  party, 
using  Burns's  poem  Hallmve'en  as  a  guide ;  or 
to  go  a-souling  as  the  English  used.  In  short, 
no  custom  that  was  once  honored  at  Hallow- 
e'en is  out  of  fashion  now.  "  Cyniver  "  has 
been  borrowed  from  Wales,  and  the  "  dumb- 
cake"  from  the  Hebrides.  In  the  Scotch 
custom  of  cabbage-stalk  pulling,  if  the  stalk 
comes  up  easily,  the  husband  or  wife  will  be 
easy  to  win.  The  melted-lead  test  to  show 
the  occupation  of  the  husband-to-be  has  been 
adopted  in  the  United  States.  If  the  metal 
cools  in  round  drops,  the  tester  will  never 
marry,  or  her  husband  will  have  no  profes- 
sion. White  of  egg  is  used  in  the  same  way. 
Like  the  Welsh  test  is  that  of  filling  the 
mouth  with  water,  and  walking  round  the 
house  until  one  meets  one's  fate.  An  adapta- 
tion of  the  Scottish  "  three  luggies "  is  the 
row  of  four  dishes  holding  dirt,  water,  a  ring, 
and  a  rag.  The  dirt  means  divorce,  the 
water,  a  trip  across  the  ocean,  the  ring,  mar- 
riage, the  rag,  no  marriage  at  all. 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    169 

After  the  charms  have  been  tried,  fagots  are 
passed  about,  and  by  the  eerie  light  of  burn- 
ing salt  and  alcohol,  ghost  stories  are  told, 
each  concluding  his  installment  as  his  fagot 
withers  into  ashes.  Sometimes  the  cabbage 
stalks  used  in  the  omens  take  the  place  of 
fagots. 

To  induce  prophetic  dreams  salt,  in  quan- 
tities from  a  pinch  to  an  egg  full,  is  eaten  be- 
fore one  goes  to  bed. 

"*Miss  Jeanette,  that's  such  a  fine  trick! 
You  must  swallow  a  salt  herring  in  three  bites, 
bones  and  all,  and  not  drink  a  drop  till  the  ap- 
parition of  your  future  spouse  comes  in  the  night 
to  offer  you  a  drink  of  water.'  " 

Adams  :  Chrissie's  Fate. 

If,  after  taking  three  doses  of  salt  two 
minutes  apart,  a  girl  goes  to  bed  backward, 
lies  on  her  right  side,  and  does  not  move  till 
morning,  she  is  sure  to  have  eventful  dreams. 
Pills  made  of  a  hazelnut,  a  walnut,  and  nut- 
meg grated  together  and  mixed  with  butter 
and  sugar  cause  dreams  :  if  of  gold,  the  hus- 


I/O  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

band  will  be  rich ;  if  of  noise,  a  tradesman ; 
if  of  thunder  and  lightning,  a  traveler.  As 
in  Ireland  bay-leaves  on  or  under  a  man's 
pillow  cause  him  to  dream  of  his  sweetheart. 
Also 

"  Turn  your  boots  toward  the  street, 
Leave  your  garters  on  your  feet. 
Put  your  stockings  on  your  head. 
You'll  dream  of  the  one  you're  going  to  wed." 

Lemon-peel  carried  all  day  and  rubbed  on  the 
bed-posts  at  night  will  cause  an  apparition  to 
bring  the  dreaming  girl  two  lemons.  For 
quiet  sleep  and  the  fulfilment  of  any  wish  eat 
before  going  to  bed  on  Hallowe'en  a  piece  of 
dry  bread. 

A  far  more  interesting  development  of  the 
Hallowe'en  idea  than  these  innocent  but 
colorless  superstitions,  is  promised  by  the 
pageant  at  Fort  Worth,  Texas,  on  October 
thirty-first,  1916.  In  the  masque  and  pageant 
of  the  afternoon  four  thousand  school  children 
took  part.  At  night  scenes  from  the  pageant 
were  staged  on  floats  which  passed  along  the 
streets.     The    subject    was    Preparedness   for 


HALLOWE'EN  IN  AMERICA    171 

PeacCt  and  comprised  scenes  from  American 
history  in  which  peace  played  an  honorable 
part.  Such  were :  the  conference  of  William 
Penn  and  the  Quakers  with  the  Indians,  and 
the  opening  of  the  East  to  American  trade. 
This  is  not  a  subject  limited  to  performances 
at  Hallowtide.  May  there  not  be  written  and 
presented  in  America  a  truly  Hallowe'en 
pageant,  illustrating  and  befitting  its  noble 
origin,  and  making  its  place  secure  among 
the  holidays  of  the  year  ? 


HALLOWE'EN 

Bring  forth  the  raisins  and  the  nuts — 
To-night  All-Hallows'  Spectre  struts 

Along  the  moonlit  way. 
No  time  is  this  for  tear  or  sob, 
Or  other  woes  our  joys  to  rob, 
But  time  for  Pippin  and  for  Bob, 

And  Jack-o'-lantern  gay. 

Come  forth,  ye  lass  and  trousered  kid. 
From  prisoned  mischief  raise  the  lid, 

And  lift  it  good  and  high. 
Leave  grave  old  Wisdom  in  the  lurch. 
Set  Folly  on  a  lofty  perch, 
Nor  fear  the  awesome  rod  of  birch 

When  dawn  illumes  the  sky. 

'Tis  night  for  revel,  set  apart 

To  reillume  the  darkened  heart, 

And  rout  the  hosts  of  Dole. 

'Tis  night  when  Goblin,  Elf,  and  Fay, 

Come  dancing  in  their  best  array 

To  prank  and  royster  on  the  way. 

And  ease  the  troubled  soul. 
172 


HALLOWE'EN  173 

The  ghosts  of  all  things,  past  parade, 
Emerging  from  the  mist  and  shade 

That  hid  them  from  our  gaze, 
And  full  of  song  and  ringing  mirth, 
In  one  glad  moment  of  rebirth, 
Again  they  walk  the  ways  of  earth. 

As  in  the  ancient  days. 

The  beacon  light  shines  on  the  hill. 
The  will-o'-wisps  the  forests  fill 

With  flashes  filched  from  noon  ; 
And  witches  on  their  broomsticks  spry 
Speed  here  and  yonder  in  the  sky, 
And  lift  their  strident  voices  high 

Unto  the  Hunter's  moon. 

The  air  resounds  with  tuneful  notes 
From  myriads  of  straining  throats, 

All  hailing  Folly  Queen  ; 
So  join  the  swelling  choral  throng, 
Forget  your  sorrow  and  your  wrong, 
In  one  glad  hour  of  joyous  song 

To  honor  Hallowe'en. 

J.  K.  Bangs  in  Harper^s  WeeUy,  Nov.  6,  1910. 


HALLOWE'EN  FAILURE 

"Who's  dat  peekin'  in  de  do'  ? 

Set  mah  heart  a-beatin'  I 
Thought  I  see'  a  spook  for  sho 

On  mah  way  to  meetin'. 
Heerd  a  rustlin'  all  aroun', 

Trees  all  sort  o'  jiggled ; 
An'  along  de  frosty  groun' 

Funny  shadders  wriggled. 

Who's  dat  by  de  winder-sill  ? 

Gittin'  sort  o'  skeery  ; 
Feets  is  feelin'  kind  o'  chill, 

Eyes  is  sort  o'  teary. 
'Most  as  nervous  as  a  coon 

When  de  dawgs  is  barkin*, 
Er  a  widder  when  some  spoon 

Comes  along  a-sparkin'. 

Whass  dat  creepin'  up  de  road, 

Quiet  like  a  ferret, 
Hoppin'  sof 'ly  as  a  toad? 

Maybe  hit's  a  sperrit  I 

174 


HALLOWE'EN  FAILURE      175 

Lordy  I  hope  dey  ain't  no  ghos' 

Come  to  tell  me  howdy. 
I  ain't  got  no  use  for  those 

Fantoms  damp  an'  cloudy. 

Whass  dat  standin'  by  de  fence 

Wid  its  eyes  a-yearnin', 
Drivin'  out  raah  common-sense 

Wid  its  glances  burnin'  ? 
Don't  dass  skeercely  go  to  bed 

Wid  dem  spookses  roun'  me. 
Ain't  no  res'  fo'  dis  yere  head 

When  dem  folks  surroun'  me. 

Whass  dat  groanin'  soun'  I  hear 

Off  dar  by  de  gyardin  ? 
Lordy  I  Lordy  1  Lordy  dear, 

Grant  dis  sinner  pardon  I  ^ 

I  won't  nebber — I  declar' 

Ef  it  ain't  my  Sammy  I 
Sambo,  what  yo'  doin'  dar  ? 

Yo'  can't  skeer  yo'  mammy  I 

OaelyIuE  Smith  in  Harper's  Weekly ^ 

Oct.  29,  1910. 


HALLOWE'EN 

Pixie,  kobold,  elf,  and  sprite 
All  are  on  their  rounds  to-night, — 
In  the  wan  moon's  silver  ray 
Thrives  their  helter-skelter  play. 

Fond  of  cellar,  barn,  or  stack 

True  unto  the  almanac. 

They  present  to  credulous  eyes 
Strange  hobgoblin  mysteries. 

Cabbage-stumps — straws  wet  with  dew — 
Apple-skins,  and  chestnuts  too. 
And  a  mirror  for  some  lass 
Show  what  wonders  come  to  pass. 

Doors  they  move,  and  gates  they  hide 

Mischiefs  that  on  moonbeams  ride 

Are  their  deeds, — and,  by  their  spells, 

Love  records  its  oracles. 
176 


HALLOWE'EN  177 

Don't  we  all,  of  long  ago 

By  the  ruddy  fireplace  glow, 
In  the  kitchen  and  the  hall, 
Those  queer,  coof-like  pranks  recall  ? 

Eery  shadows  were  they  then  — 
But  to-night  they  come  again  ; 
Were  we  once  more  but  sixteen 
Precious  would  be  Hallowe'en. 

Joel  Benton  in  Hai-per's  WeeMy, 
Oct.  31f  1896. 


HALLOWE'EN 

A  gypsy  flame  is  on  the  hearth, 
Sign  of  this  carnival  of  mirth. 

Through  the  dun  fields  and  from  the 

glade 
Flash  merry  folk  in  masquerade  — 
It  is  the  witching  Hallowe'en. 

Pale  tapers  glimmer  in  the  sky, 
The  dead  and  dying  leaves  go  by ; 
Dimly  across  the  faded  green 
Strange  shadows,  stranger  shades,  are 
seen  — 
It  is  the  mystic  Hallowe'en. 

Soft  gusts  of  love  and  memory 
Beat  at  the  heart  reproachfully ; 
The  lights  that  burn  for  those  who  die 
Were  flickering  low,  let  them  flare 
high  — 
It  is  the  haunting  Hallowe'en. 

A.  F.  MUREAY  in  Rarper^s  Weekly, 
Oct.  30,  1909. 
178 


No  I£allowe'en  without  a  Jack  u  --L-l> 


Magazine  References  to  Hallowe'en 
Entertainments 

Chabades : 
Charades,  menu,  tests.     H.  Bazar,  32  :  894. 

Childben's  Parties  : 
Fortune   games  for  very  little  children.    St  N., 

23:33. 
Hallowe'en   fortunes   for  boys  and  girls.    Delin., 

66 : 631. 
Masquerade,  games,  tests.     W.  H.  C,  35  :43. 
Decorations.     W.  H.  C,  36  :34. 
Old-fashioned  games.     St.  K,  35  :51. 
Children's    celebration    of    Hallowe'en.     St.    N., 

32 :  1124. 

Church  Parties  : 

Mystic  party.     L.  H.  J.,  22  :  57. 

For  Young  People's  Soc.     L.  H.  J.,  26  :  34. 

"  Phantom  fair.' '    W.  H.  C,  39  :  32. 

Club  Parties  : 
For    Country  Club.     Invitation.     Costumes.    Sup- 
per.    Dance.     W.  H.  C,  41:30. 
"  Candle-light  cafe."    W.  H.  C,  42.    Oct,  1915. 

Costumes: 
Delin.,  78 :  258. 

Country- House  Party  : 
Country  Life,  18  :  624. 

Dances  : 
Dances,  drills,  costumes.     Delin.,  78:258. 
Hallowe'en  party.     W.  H.  C,  40 :  39. 
Bam  party.    W.  H.  C,  34  :  30. 
179 


i8o  THE  BOOK  OF  HALLOWE'EN 

Decorations  and  Pavoes  : 
Autumu-leaf  decorations  and  prizes.   Delin. ^  64 :  638. 
Cobweb  party.     Delin.,  91 :  44. 
Hall :  Handicraft  for  handy  girls. 
Place-cards,  verses.     L.  H.  J.,  28  :  50. 

L.  H.  J.,  31 :  40. 

H.  Bazar,  39  :  1046. 

L.  H.  J.,  20 :  48. 

L.  H.  J.,  16  :  38. 
Cinderella  party.     W.  H.  C,  34  :  30. 
Favors.     H.  Bazar,  45  :  516. 
Nut  favors.     W.  H.  C,  32  :  53. 
Original  decorations.     W.  H.  C,  32  :  32. 
Fads  and  frills.     W.  H.  C,  32  :  24. 

Games  and  Fortunes  : 
Witchery  games  for  Hallowe'en.    Delin.,  64 :  576. 

H.  Bazar.,  33:1650. 

L.  H.  J.,  20:48. 

L.  H.  J.,  25:58. 
Blain :  Games  for  Hallowe'en. 
Quaint  customs.     H.  Bazar,  46  :  578. 
H.  Bazar,  32  :  894. 
Witches'  think  cap.     L.  H.  J.,  32  :  29. 
Hallowe'en  happenings.     St  N.,  35:51. 

Invitations  : 
H.  Bazar,  33  :  1650. 

Parties  (miscellaneous) : 
H.  Bazar,  28  pt.  2  :  841. 
H.  Bazar,  32  :  894. 
L.  H.  J.,  29  :  105. 
L.  H.  J.,  30  :  103. 

Nut-crack  night  party.     H.  Bazar,  41 :  1106. 
Nut-crack  party.     H.  Bazar,  38  :  1092. 
Novel  party.     W.  H.  C,  31  :  42. 
Yarn  party.     L.  H.  J.,  26  :  63. 
L.  H.  J.,  23:68. 


MAGAZINE  REFERENCES     i8i 

L.  H.  J.,  14  :  25. 
-Barn  party.     W.  H.  C,  34  :  30. 
Kovel   party  with   musical  accompaniment    Ma- 

sician,  18 :  665. 
Cotter's  Saturday  night.     W.  H.  C,  38 :  40. 
*  *  Ghosts  I  have  met "  party.    Pantomime.  W.  H.  0., 
^    37:27. 

Two  jolly  affairs.     W.  H.  C,  39  :  32. 
JTryst  of  witches.     Good  H.,  53 :  463. 
Tarn  o'  Shanter  party.     Delin.,  85  :  26. 
Jolly  good  time.     Delin.,  74 :  367. 
Hints  for  Hallowe'en  hilarities.     L.  H.  J.,  27  :46. 
^  Jolly  party.     L.  H.  J.,  19  :  41. 
^    Hallowe'en  fun.     L.  H.  J.,  33  :  33. 

Pumpkin  stunt  party.     W.  H.  C,  45.     Oct,  1917. 
Character  party.     W.  H.  C,  45.    Oct,  1917. 

School  Parties  : 

"  Cotter's  Saturday  night"    W.  H.  C,  38 :  40. 
High  school  party.     W.  H.  C,  42  :  34. 
How  the  college  girl  celebrates  Hallowe'en.  W.  H.  0. , 
31 :  16. 

Suppers,  Table  Decxdbations,  Menus  : 
Hallowe'en  suppers.     H.  Bazar,  35  :  1670. 

H.  Bazar,  37  :  1063. 

L.  H.  J.,  24  :  78. 

L.  H.  J.,  16  :  38. 

W.  H.  a,  40  :  39. 

W.  H.  C,  43:35. 

H.  Bazar,  44  :  641. 

H.  Bazar,  45 :  507. 
Hallowe'en  party  table.    L.  H.  J.,  29  :44. 

H.  Bazar,  32  :  894. 
Hallowe'en  supper.     Good  H.,  53 :  569. 

The  pages  refer  always  to  the  October  number  of 
the  year. 


Supplementary  List  of  Readings,  Reci- 
tations, and  Plays 


TiTLB 

AUTHOB 

SOUECK 

All  Hallowe'en  (story) 

All     the     Yeai'     Round, 
60;  347 

All  Sotds'  Eve  (story) 

Hopper 

Eng.  Illus.  Mag.,  18:225 

All  Souls^  Eve  (story) 

Lyall 

Temple  Bar.,  124  :  379 

Black  cat  (story) 

Poe 

Boogdh  Man 

Dunbar 

Eldridge  Entertainment 
House 

Brier- Base  (story) 

Grimm 

Fairy  tales 

Broomstick  brigade 

J.  T.  Wagner 

6  Barclay  St.,  N.  Y.  City 

Bud's  fairy  tale  (poem) 

Riley 

Child-world 

Children's  Play  with  mu- 

sical acoompauiment 

Musician,  16;  693 

Corn-song  (poem) 

Whittier 

Elder-tree  mother  (story) 

Andersen 

Fairy  tales 

Fairies  (poem) 

Allingham 

Fairy  and  witch  (play) 

Nelson 

Eldridge  Entertainment 
House. 

Feast  of  the  little  lanterns 

( 

(operetta) 

Bliss 

IHaJierman  and  the  genie 

(story) 

Arabian  Night$ 

Ghost  (story) 

O'Connor 

Ohosts  1  have  met 

Bangs 

GhosVs  touch  (story) 

Collins 

Golden  arm  (story) 

Clemens 

How  to  teU  a  story 

Goblin  stone  (play) 

Wickes 

Child's  Book,  p.  127 

Guess  who  (song  and  drill)  Murray 

Eldridge  Entertainment 

House 

Htdlouie'en  adventure 

(story) 

McDonald 
182 

Canad.  Mag.,  12:61 

SUPPLEMENTARY  LIST       183 


Title 

AUTHOB 

SOUBCB 

HaUotoe^en  adventure 

(play) 

Koogle 

Eldridge  Entertainment 
House 

Hdttmoe^en  frolic  (poem) 

Cone 

St.  N.  20  pt.  1 :  15 

Haunted  gate  (play) 

Wormwood 

Eldridge  Entertainment 
House 

House  in  the  wood  (story) 

Grimm 

Fairy  tales 

LitUe  Butterkin  (story) 

Asbjornsen 

Fairy    tales  from  the   far 
north 

Little  Donna  Juana  (story) 

Brooks 

Mother  Goose  recital 

Musician,  21 :  633 

Nix  of  the  mill-pond  (story) 

Qrimm 

Fairy  tales 

Feter  Fan   in  Kensington 
Gardens  (story) 

Barrie 

Eapunzel  (story) 

Grimm 

Fairy  tales 

Bed  shoes  (story) 

Andersen 

Fairy  tales 

Scarecrows  a-roatning 

(play) 

Eldridge  Entertainment 
House 

Seein'  things  (poem) 

Field 

Love  songs  of  childhood 

Snow-white  (story) 

Grimm 

Fairy  tales 

Straw    phantom     (panto- 
mime) 

BlackaU 

St.  N.,  44:1133 

Testing  of  Sir  Gawayne 
(play) 

Merington 

Festival  plays,  p.  911 

Voyage  of  Bran 

Meyer 

Walpurgisnight  (story) 

Zsobokke 

Wind  in  the  rose-bush 

(story) 

Freeman 

INDEX  TO  QUOTATIONS 


»                   TITLK 

AUTHOB 

Paoe                Boubcz 

Att-hattawa  honejfmoon 

New    Eng.    Magazine, 

(story) 

Marks 

104        37:308 

All  8ouJ$'  Eve  (poem) 

Marks,  J.  P. 

31-32 

Ancient  Irish 

O'Carry 

7 

Ballad  of  Tarn  Lin 

65  Child's  Balladfl 

Battle  of  the  trees 

Taliesin 

7  Neo'druidieal  herea§ 

Caractacua  (poem) 

Mason 

U 

Celtic   twilight  (poem   in 

1 

introdnotion  to) 

Teats 

58 

Charma  (poem) 

Opper 

161  Miuney,30:2H5 

Comua  (play) 

Milton 

131 

Cuchulain  of  Muirthemne 

Gregory 

37-38-39 

Cuchulain'a  sickbed 

42 

Death  of  theflotoera  (poem) 

\  Bryant 

18-19 

Different  paHy  (story) 

Bradley 

156-157  Harper's  Bazar,  41 :  131 

Dinnaenchua  of  Mag  Slechi 

[ 

21  Neo-druidieal  heresy 

Djinna  (poem) 

Hngo 

148 

Druid  aong  of  Oathvah 

(poem) 

Todhulw 

9 

Expedition  of  Nera 

44 

"Fair  maid  who" 

139  EncTO.  of  Snpeistitions 

Fairy-faith  in  Celtic  cottn- 

triea 

Wentz 

48-49 

Fairy  fiddler  (poem) 

Hopper 

64 

Fasti 

Ovid 

114 

^au«<(plaj> 

Goethe 

lao 

184 


INDEX  TO  QUOTATIONS        185 


T1T1.K 

First  mnter  »ong  (poem) 
'•  Five  hundred  points  " 
Qilea  Corey  of  the  Salem 

Farms  (play) 
Golden  Legend 
Great  fir-tree  of  Takasago 
(story) 
**  Green  fairy  island  " 
Hag  (poem) 
Hallowe'en  (poem) 
Hallowe'en  (poem) 

Hallorce'en  (poem) 
Hallowe'en  (poem) 
Hallowe'en  (poem) 

Hallowe'en  (poem) 

HaUotve'en  (poem)' 


Hallowe'en  Failure  (poem)  Smith 

Halloxoe'en    or    Christie's 

fate  (story)  Adams 

Hallowe'en  in  Ireland  Trant 

Hallowe'en  fantasy  (play),  Pyle 

(Priest  and  the  Piper) 
Halloxoe'en  reformation 

(story)  Bntterworth 

Hallotce'en  wish  (poem)  Mnnkittrick 

Hallowe'en  wraith  (story)  Black 

Hiawatha  (poem)  Longfellow 

Immortal  hour  (play)  Sharp 
Jorinda  and  Joringel 

(story)  Grimm 

V Allegro  (poem)  Milton 


Author       Page  8ocmcK 

Graves  16 

Tasser  98 

Longfellow      161-152 
De  Voragine  30 

Binder  146  Old-world  Japan 

Parry  103  Welsh  Melodies 

Herrick  66-67 

Burns  73-74-75 

Ooxe  18-19-88- 

89-96 
Letts  99-100 

Sheard  143  Canadian  Mag. ,  36 :  33 

Bangs  172-173  Harper's  Weekly,  Nov. 

5,  1910 
Benton  176-177  Harper's  Weekly,  Oct. 

31,  1896 
Murray  178  Harper's  Weekly,  Oct. 

30,  1909 
175  Harper's  Weekly,  Oct. 

29,  1910 

169  Scribner's,  3 :  26 
51  Dewdrops  and  Diamonds 
49  Harper's  Bazar,  31,  pt. 
2:947 


149-150  Century,  27 :  48 
93-94  Harper's  Weekly,  Ool. 
27,  1900 
71  Harper's,  81:830 
145 
39-40-41  Fortn.  Rev.  74:867 

135  Grimm's  Fairy  Tales 
86 


1 86        INDEX  TO  QUOTATIONS 


Title 

Author 

Page               Sodbcs 

Land  of  Hearths  Desire 

36-43-45- 

(play) 

Teats 

47 

Lavengro  (story) 

Borrow 

129 

Little  Orphant  Annie 

Kiley 

152-153 

Loch  Gannan 

O'Ciarain 

36 

Lycidaa  (poem) 

Milton 

85 

Macbeth  (play) 

Shakspere 

89 

ifonasiery  (story) 

Soott 

62-63-76- 
103 

Night  of  the  dead 

Le  Braz 

116-117  Legend  of  the  dead 

"On  nuts  bnrning" 

Graydon 

91-92 

On  the  morning  of  Christ' 

's 

nativity  (poem) 

Milton 

28 

Paradise  Lost  (poem ) 

Milton 

120 

Passing  of  Aiihur  (  poem)  Teunyson 

84 

Pastorals  (poem) 

Gay 

74-75-92- 
93-94-95 
97 

Peer  Gynt  (play) 

Ibsen 

131 

Peter  and  Wendy  (story) 

Barrie 

64 

Polyolbion  (poem) 

Drayton 

10 

Pomona  (poem) 

Morris 

23 

Rip  Van  Winkle  (play) 

Jefferson 

150-151 

Robin  Goodfellow  (poem) 

Johuson 

86 

St.  John's  Eve  (poem) 

Kickham 

12 

St.  John's  Fire  (play) 

Sndermann 

141 

St.  Sroithin's  C%rti>(poem) 

Scoit 

69 

"Soul,  soul" 

98  Notes  and  Qaeries 

Spdl  (poem) 

Gay 

91 

Splores  of  a  Hallowe^en 

(poem) 

Dick 

72 

Sunken  bell  (play ) 

Hauptmann 

14 

Tale  of  Hallowe'en  (story) 

76  Leisure  Hour,  23:765 

Tarn  Glen  (poera> 

Bums 

79 

7am  o'  Shanter  (poem) 

Burns 

67-68 

Tannhauaer  (play) 

Wagner 

132-133 

Tempest  (play) 

Shakspere 

CT 

INDEX  TO  QUOTATIONS         187 


TiTM!                           AUTHOE 

Page                Source 

Three-fold  chronicle  (story)  Sharp 

54-56  Harper's,  73:842 

Torn' a  Hallowe' en  joke 

(story)     Wright 

154  Dewdropa  and  Diamonds 

Twig  of  thorn  (play)            Warren 

44-45 

Vertutnnus  and  Pomoiia 

(poem)     Ovid 

24 

Voluspa  (poem) 

122 

We  girls  (story)                   Whitney 

162-163 

"When  comes  the  har- 

vest "                               Botrel 

112  Songs  of  Brittany 

When  de  folks  is  gone 

(poem)    Riley 

153 

"When  ebery  one" 

160  Werner's  Readings,  No. 

"When  ebery  one" 

160  Werner's  Readings,  No. 
^1 

WUd  huntsman  (poem) 
Willie  Baird  (poem) 

Scott 
Bncbanao 

OX 

90 
70 

INDEX 


Aberdbbnshirk,  6o 

Adder-stonej    (serpent's-egg 
badge),  11,27 

Ailill,  36-38,  39 

Ale,  80,  103 

All  Hallows  Eve,  29,  88,  102, 
106.    See  also  Hallowe'en 

All  Saints',  4,  29-30,  no,  118, 
126 

All  Souls',  4t  30^3  It  98-99,  106, 
uo,  i|3,  118,  142,  144 

Alphabet,  96,  160,  166-167 

America,  149,  153 

Anaxarete,  24 

Angus,  36,  38-39 

Ankou,  109,  115 

Apollo,  I,  129,  134 

Apparitions.     See  Ghosts 

Apples,  23,  26,  50-53,  72,  77-78, 
92.  95.  103-104.  106-107,  115, 
130,  149,  15s,  157-158.  161, 
162,  164,  166 

Apple-island,  85 

Apple-seeds,  92-93,  158-159 

Arabs,  147 

Ariel,  87 

Armorica,  108 

Arthur,  King,  84,  108 

Ash-tree,  63,  105,  122,  137 ;  ber- 
ries of,  29 

Ashes,  56,  60,  68,  83 

Augury.     See  Omens 

August,  Roman  festival  in,  25-26 

August  first,  Celtic  festival  of,  15 

Augustus,  27 

Avilion  (Avalon),  84-85,  107 

Ayrshire,  68 


Baal,  8,  12-13,  i7 

Baal-fire,  12 

Baldur,  1 20-121 

Balmoml,  61 

Barra,  79 

Bats,  134,  152,  155 

Bay-leaves,  170 

Bean,  94 

Bedivere,  84 

Belgian,  144 

Beltaine,  12,  79 

Bells,  99,  III,  116,  118,  13a,  137, 

142,  154 
Benevento,  131 
Bergen,  130 
Black,  156 
Black  sheep,  17,  50 
Black  sow,  102 
"Black  vespers,"  X13 
Blindfolded  seekers,  33,  70,  73, 

77-78,  83,  160 
Blocksberg,  130,  141 
Boats,  146,  163 
Bochica,  i 
Bonfires,  3,  8-9,  12,  13,  17,  21, 

J;o,  59-61,   101-102,  125;   to 
ight    through    Purgatory,   31, 

106;  to  protect  from  evil,  39, 

loi 
Boniface,  29 

Border,  Scottish,  62,  81,  III 
Bretons,  99,  1 10- in 
Briar,  57 
Briar-Rose,  125 
Bride,  36 

Britain,  5-6,  27,  87,  109,  III 
British  Isles,  5,  107,  109,  126 


188 


INDEX 


189 


Brittany,  108-109,  143,  145,  166 
Brynhild,  124 
Bucban,  59 
Button,  156,  164 

Cabbages,  53-54,  70-72,  77, 95, 

104,  164,  168-169 
Cadwallo,  King,  104 
Caer,  38 
Caesar,  5-8,  109 
Cak£.J3i^3>^.  97-98.  l03tJ44« 

Callcannon,  51 

Canada,  167 

Candlemas  Day,  88 

Candles,  50,  53,  55,  59,  69,  80, 
95-96.  99.  "2,  118,  145.155. 
158,  163 

Cardiganshire,  102 

Camutes,  109 

Cat,  II,  49,  66,  68, 134,  152, 155, 
164 

Catskill  Mts.,  150 

Celtic  twilight,  58 

Celts,  classes  of,  5;  beliefs,  6,  15, 
18,  30,  33,  79,  82,  107-110, 
124,  125,  142;  characteristics 
of,  115,  119 

Cemeteries,  54-55,  113-114,  142 

Changelings,  35-36,  86 

Charms.     See  Omens 

Chartrain,  109 

Cherokees,  3 

Chinese,  145 

Christ,  4-5,  27,  119 

Christian  religion,  3,  27-31,  50, 
59,  83,  loi,  109,  126,  129;  in 
Britain,  27,  129;  in  Ireland, 
42 ;  in  Brittany,  109 ;  in  Scan- 
dinavia, 126 

Christmas,  3,  97,  no,  154 

Church,  3-4,  30-31,  80,  89,  113, 
118,  143,  144;  festivals,  3 

Circle,  8 

Claudius,  27 

Cluny,  30 

Coel  Coeth,  10 1 

Coins,  51-52,  72,  156 


Colonies,  149 

Columb  Kill.     See  St.  Colomba 
Connaught,  35 
Continent,  3,  118 
Com,  138;  -stalks,  155 
Cornwall,  85,  108 
Creed,  55 

Crom  Croich  (Cruaich),  20-21 
Cross,  sun-symbol,  8;  Christian, 
29, 42, 63, 137 ;  -roads,  65, 103, 

137 
Cruachan,  35,  37 
Cuchulain,  41-42,  84 
Cuckoos,  134,  139-140 
Cyniver,  105,  168 

Dagda,  39 
Dahut,  III 
Dance,  3,  44,  56,  61,  67,  80,  81- 

82,  103,  106,  126,  133 
Danann.    See  Tuatha  De  Danann 
Danu,  20 
Dathi,  43 
Dead,  19-20,  30,  37, 98-99, 109- 

117,  129,  142  et  seq,;  return, 

4.  99.  107.  "4-1 17.  »45.  146, 
149;    disturbed    by   weeping, 

"7.  145 

Death,  10,  112,  156;  Lord  of. 
See  Saman.  Samhain  asso- 
ciated with,  20-21,  30-31; 
prophesied,  52,  57,  60,  65,  83, 
102,  106 

Decoration  of  graves,  II 8,  144 

Delphi,  129,  134 

Derbyshire,  99 

Deux-Sfrvres,  109 

Devil,  43,  50,  55,  57,  66-6^  89, 
102,  133-135.  140 

Dew,  136,  139 

Dietrich  von  Bern,  131 

Dishes,  73,  83,  104,  165,  168 

Dispater,  109 

Dissatisfied,  39-40,  57-58.  «3«» 
141 

Djinns,  147-148 

Doll,  wax,  151 

Dolmens,  IIO 


190 


INDEX 


Dorsetshire,  99 

Dovrefeld,  130 

Dragon,  145 

Dreams,  140;  prophetic,  14,  57, 
79,  165,  169 

Drink,  57,  79 

Druid,  meaning,  6-7 ;  draught, 
42;  festivals,  11,  26,  loi; 
lamps,  73 ;  stone,  1 1 ;  stones, 
no;  wand,  7;  -fire,  50,  166 

Druids,  9-1 1,  29,  42-43,  92,  103, 
109-I10,  122-123,  126;  as 
priests,  5-6 ;  powers  of,  7,  27 

"  Drus,"  6 

Dumb-cake,  80,  i6S 

Dwarfs,  no 

Earth,  54,  83,  165 

Edane,  47.    See  also  Etain 

Edda,  124 

Egg,  165,  167;  white  of,  77-78, 

168;  -shells,  36 
Egyptian  beliefs,  i,  18 
Eichstatt,  136 
Elder,  123,  137 
Elizabeth,  Queen,  99 
Elm,  63 

Elves,  121,  149,  152 
Emer,  42 
England,  87,  89, 97, 99,  I06,  I08, 

119,  144 
English,  149 
Eochaidh,  39-40 
Episcopalians,  30 
Eriskay,  8 1 
Etain,  39-40 
Ethal,  38 

Europe,  87,  130,  135,  14a,  145 
Excalibur,  84 
Exorcism,  9,  29, 42 

Fagots,  96,  169 

Fairies,  6,  44,  46,  49,  61-65,  81- 

82,  84-85,  96,  103,  107,  no, 

149 
Fand,  41-42 
Fates,  89,  123,  134 


Feast,  of  dead,  116,  143;  of  poor, 

144 
Feng^hin,  145 
Feralia,  114 
Fern,  14,  59 
Finisifire,  no,  n7 
Fir  Bolgs,  20 
Fire,  21,  23,  45,  123-125  ;  -god, 

120;  spirits  of,  147 
Fires,  11,  17,  28-29,  50,  52,  loi, 

109,  112.     See  also  Bonfires 
Flamina,  25 
Flour,  52,  57,  154,  158 
Flowers,  n8,  144 
Fomor,  20,  35 
Footprints,  57,  60,  83 
"Forced-fire,"  17 
Fort  Worth,  170 
Forts,  fairy,  37,  44,  46 
France,  108,  no,  n2,  118,  131, 

142 
Franks,  in 
"Free-night,"  141,  154 
Freya,  120,  127,  129,  131,  134 
"  Furious  Host,"  131 
Future,  questions  about,  34,  69 

Gabriel  Ratchets,  90 
Gaul,  5-6,  27,  109,  119 
Germans,  119 
Germany,    130,    131,    134,    136, 

144 
Ghosts,  49,  63,  69,  76-77,  88. 

116,  127,  144,  146.  152.  »5S- 

See  also  Dead 
Glass,  10- II,  96,  166 
Gnomes,  48 
Goat,  67-68,  134 
Goblin,  35-36,  61,  64,  149,  153 
Gods  of  Ireland.     See  TuathaUe 

Danann 
"  Good  Neighbors,"  63 
"  Good  People,"  45,  49 
Goths,  119 
Grallon,  in 

Great  Britain.     See  Britain 
Greek,  i,  5,  6,  30,  85,  120 
Gregory,  29-30 


INDEX 


191 


Guteesh,  46 
Gunnar,  124 


Hair,  77,  96,  138,  166-167 

Hallowe'en,  3-4,  35,  43,  46,  49- 
50,  61,  64-66,  68,  72,  79,  81, 
85,  89,  90,  95-96,  99,  103,  105, 

106,  112,  129,  138,  140,  142, 
144,    149,    152,     154,    164,   165, 

170;  pagan,  3,  21 ;  charms  at, 
26,  33.  S3.  56 ;  born  on,  54,  62 

HalUrwe^en,  poem,  70,  168 

Hansel  and  Grethel,  134 

Hares,  135 

Hartz  Mts.,  130 

Harvest,  3-4,  15,  17,  25,  30-31, 
34t  59.  69,  97,  106,  112,  137, 

155 
Hawthorn,  123,  137 
Hazel,  85 
Hearts,  156 
Hebndes,  79 
Hel,  122,  131 
Hemp,  14,  33,  53,  74 
Henry  VIII,  99 
Henry  Hudson,  150 
Herbs,  46-47,  53,  66,  126,  129- 

130 
Heme  the  Hunter,  90 
Herodotus,  5 
Hesperides,  85 
Highlands,  59,  65,  77 
Hodur,  121 
Holda,  131-132,  136 
Holiday,  61 
Hollow  Land,  41 
Holly,  63 
Hoop,  157 
Horselberg,  131 
Horseshoes,  138,  153 
Horus,  I 
Husking-bees,  3 

Iceland,  125 

Idun,  120 

Immortality,  10,  85, 107,  lao 

Indians,  3,  145,  150 

Invocation,  21,  92 


lona,  50 

Iphis,  24 

Ireland  3,  5,  13,  15,  17,  20,  35, 
4^50.  59,  62,  72-73,  78-80, 
104,  107,  127,  170;  belief  in 
fairies,  6,  35 

Irish  Sea,  20 

Iron,  152 

Italy,  119,  131.  '42 

Ivy,  57 

Jack-o'-lantern,  49-50, 69, 121, 

'55 
Japan,  2,  146 
Jokes,  154 
Jonah,  13 
Juniper,  123,  137 
Jupiter,  8 

Kale.    See  Cabbage 
Kensington  Gardens,  64 
Ker-Is,  III 
Kettle,  89,  134,  155 
Key,  55,  72,  144,  156 

Laeg,  42 

«' Lambswool,"  51 

Lammas,  28 

Lancashire,  99 

Land  of  Heart's  Desire,  36 

Land  of  Youth,  40 

«*  Lanterns  of  the  dead,"  If  2 

Lanterns  in  Japan,  146 

Latin.     See  Rome 

Lead-melting,  55-56,  77,  168 

Leek, 104-105 

Legends,  origin  of,  2 

Lemons,  170 

Leprechauns,  48 

Lewis,  80 

Liban,  41 

Lincolnshire,  89 

"  Little  People,"  48-49f  85 

"  Livelong,"  53 

Loki,  120 

London,  97 

Lords  of  Misrule,  88 

Love-knots,  156 


192 


INDEX 


Lucifer,  iso 

-  Lack  of  Edenhall,"  96 
Luggies.    See  Dishes 
Lugh,  14-15 
Lugnasad,  15,  28,  33 

Macbeth,  123 

Magic,  7, 15,  155  {  black,  38, 156 

Maine,  165 

Malt,  80 

Malta,  144 

Man,  Isle  of,  20,  82 

Manitous,  150 

Mars,  8 

Martinmas,  62 

Mary,  Virgin,  29,  126,  132,  138, 

Mary  Avenel,  62 

Maryland,  165 

Massachusetts,  164 

Master  of  the  Revels,  97 

May- bride,  126 

May  Eve  and  Day,  4,  11-13,  ^' 

33.  45.  47.  »07»  125,  135,  136 

etseq.;  -fires,   13,  61;  -pole, 

126;  -ridings,  125;  -footing, 

140 
Meal,  83,  164 
Meath,  15,  17 
Medb,  36,  39 
Meg,  68 

"  Men  of  Peace,"  63 
Mercury,  8,  15 
Midir,  39-41 
Middle  Ages,  129 
Midsummer,   3,  il,  20,  28,  33, 

53,  125,  146 
Milk,  45,  51,  112 
Minerva,  8 
Mirror,   85,    129,   I4&-I47»   »49. 

161-162 
Miserere,  142 
Mistletoe,  7,  40,  lao 
Modred,  84 
Mona,  27 
Monastery,  62 
Moon,  40,  74,  76,  77,  146,  155, 

162 


Moray,  59 

Moytura,  20,  22,  35 

Music,  36,  39-40.  43-^7t  5^  64, 

67,87,  III 
Myths,  origin  of,  2 

Naples,  142 

Needles,  117,  133,  151,  158,  166 

Negroes,  153 

Nera,  37,  107 

Net.  83 

Neverland,  64 

New  Brunswick,  167 

New  Hampshire,  165 

New  Year,   82,   102,    154.     Ste 

also  Year's  end 
New  Year's  Day,  17 
Niflheim,  122 
Nikko,  146 

Norse,  80,  82,  119,  134 
Norway,  i,  126,  130 
•«  Nos  Galan  Gaeof,"  I02 
November,  Eve,  33,  35,  37,  44, 

50.  59.  79.  101-102,  107,  112, 

137;    first,  4,  II,  16,  25-26, 

137,  144;  in  Rome,  30;  second, 

30,  118,  144 
Nuts,  26,  II,  50-52,  73,  90-92, 

103-104,  109,  115,  144,  155, 

159-160,  169 

Oak,  6-7,  27, 40,  132 

Oats,  55,  77 

Oatmeal  cakes,  79 

Obsession,  44 

October  31st,  4,  10,  17,  50,  to, 
85,  118 

Odin,  120,  124,  129,  131 

"  Oidhche  Shamhna,"  50 

Olaf,  126 

Omens,  14,  22,  26,  50-52,  104, 
117,  137;  from  sacrifices,  9* 
»7.  33.  »23,  166;  evil,  28 

Oonah,  45 

Ops,  23 

Ordeal,  9,  123-124 

Osiris,  I,  18 

Ossian,  47-48,  150 


INDEX 


193 


Ottui,  25 

Otherworld,  19,  39,  42,  47,  84, 
103,  107,  III,  115,  lai,  146, 

Ovid,  24,  1 14 
Owls,  134,  152,  155 

Paddy  Beg,  46-47 

Paddy  More,  46-47 

Paganism,  30,  35,  59,  109,  I4I 

Pageant,  170 

Pantheon,  29 

Paradise,  31 

Partholon,  13 

Parties,  Hallowe'en,  1 55 

Peace,  171 

Peas,  92,  94 

Pelagius,  83 

Pennsylvania,  165 

Perthshire,  59 

Peru,  I 

Peter  Pan,  63-64 

Phoenicians,  5 

Picts,  108 

Piper,  fairy,  43-44,  64,  87 

Pixies,  103,  no 

Pomona,  4,  23-26,  50,  85,  155 

Pontypridd,  10 1 

Preparedness  for  Peace,  170 

Procopius,  III 

Prophets,   Druids  as,   9,  43; 

witches  as,  89,  134,  151 
Pumpkins,  155,  160 
Purgatoiy,  31,  99,  106,  145 
Puy  de  Dome,  131 
"  Puzzling-jug,"  103-104 

Races,  15,  26 

Rapunzel,  125 

Red  Mike,  54,  62 

Rick,  55 

Ring.  51-52.  55. 72. 96,  156, 165, 

168 
Rip  Van  Winkle,  150 
Rome,  8,  23-30,  114,   1 19-120 ; 

relations  to  Druids,   27;    All 

Saints'  in,  32 
Roses,  105 


Rowan.     See  Atb-tree 

Sacrifices,  20, 109, 137 ;  to  Baal, 

8-9,    11-13,  17,   loi;    omens 

from,  33 ;  to  Tyr,  123 
St.  Augustine,  83 
St.  Bridget,  45 
St.  Colomba,  50 
St.  Gertrude,  126 
St.  John's  Day  and  Eve,  3,  a8» 

109,  no,  137,  141 
St.  Kilda,  79 
St.  Michael,  85 
St.  Ninian,  83 
St:  Odilo,  30 
St.  Patrick,  5,  43,  83 
Saga,  124 
Salerno,  142 

Salt,  57,  67,  79,  82,  83,  134,  169 
Saman,  10,  31,  50,  80 
Samhain  (Siveen),  16,  18,  20-22, 

26,  31.  35-36,  38.  40-41.  43» 

48,  59.  65,  82 
Samhnagan,  60 
Samhanach,  64 
Sark.     See  Shirt 
Satan,  120,  133 
Sauin.     See  Samhain 
Scandinavia,  119,  126,  134 
Scotland,  59,  78,  79,  81,  82,  99, 

104,  127,  156;  belief  in  fairies 

in,  6,  62-64 
Scots,  108 
Seasons,  i 
Seaweed,  80 
Secrecy,  45,  77-78,  124,  155;  In 

Druid  rites,  9-10,  124 
Seed-cake,  97 
Seeds,  14,  92,  121 
Serpent's-egg.    See  Adder-stone 
Seville,  131 
Shee,  39 
Shirt-sleeve,  wetting  the,  56,  78- 

79,  126-129, 165 
Shoe,  77,  170 
Shony,  80 
Shropshire,  98 
••  Sid,"  37,  49.    See  also  Forts 


194 


[INDEX 


Sigurd,  124 

Sttou,  18 

Sleep,  39,  47,  87,  124.135 

Sloe,  52,  85 

Snakes.     See  Adder-stone 

Snap-apple.    See  Apple 

Sol,  I 

Soul-cakes.     See  Cake 

South,  165 

South  Uist,  81 

Sowens,  79 

Spain,  131,  144 

Spectre  Huntsman,  90 

Spirits,  6,  20,   103 ;  abroad,  14, 

22,  31,  35,  44,  48  ;  evil,  4,  l8, 

20,  56, 63,  87,  99,  129 
Staffordshire,  98 
Stones,  60,  101-102,  106, 109 
Stoiies,  81,  96,  149, 169 
Straw,  77,  99 
Strunt,  79 
•♦  Summer's  end,"  3-4,  11-12, 16, 

25,44 
Sun-god,  i-s,  8,  15,  44,  84-85, 
87,   120-121,    124,   126,   J36; 
-worship,  21 ;  -wise,  3,  17,  60, 

67 

Superstitions,    33,    62,  83,    135, 

>53-»54 
Swans,  38-39,  41 
Swastika,  8 
Sweden,  126,  133 
Symbols,  7-8, 28 

Tam  o'  Shanter,  68-69, 89 

Tannhauser,  131-133 

Tara,  17,  21,  43,  48,  59 

Tempest,  87 

Teuton,  108,  124, 142 

Teutonic,  4,  125 

Thanksgiving,  3-4;  for  harvest, 

59 
Thimble,  51,  72,  83,  156 
Thor,  134 
Thorn,  45 
Thread,  138,  167 
Thuiingia,  13 1 
Tiberius,  27 


Tigernmas,  20-31 

"  Tin  Islands,"  5 

Tlactga,  17 

Toads,  152 

Toasts,  126 

Todmorden,  90 

Torches,  14,  60-61,  68,  99 

Tree- worship,  7-8,  92,  123 

Trefoil,  8,  29 

Trinity,  29 

Tripod,  65,  134,  155 

Trolls,  121,  130,  J  50 

Tuatha  De  Danann,  20,  29,  38- 

39,  43,  48-50,  107-108 
Tub,  53,  93,  96,  160;  apples  in. 

See  Apples 
Tyr,  123 

United  States,  153 

Valhalla,  121-122 
Vali,  121 

Valkyries,  122,  136 
Vandals,  119 
Venus,  131-132 
Vertumnus,  24-25 
Vortumnalia,  25 
Vulcan,  120 
Vurdh,  123 

Wales,  27,  loi,  105,  106,  108, 
144,  168;  belief  in  fairies  in,  6 

Walnut-tree,  92 

Walpurga,  136 

Ward,  Hill  of.     See  Tara 

Water,  57,  68,  97,  165 

Wedding  of  sun  and  earth,  1 26, 
136 

"  Weird  Sisters,"  123 

Wendy,  64 

Wheel,  sun-symbol,  8,  13,  17  }  of 
fortune,  163 

White  Lady,  62 

Wild  Huntsman,  90,  131 

Will-o'-the-wisps,  121 

Windsor  Forest,  90 

Winnowing,  75-76 


INDEX 


195 


Winter,  first  day  of,  18,  44,  87, 

102,  112 
Witches,  4,  60-61,  65-69, 89,  99, 

loi,   129-131,   133-135,    146, 

»S5 
Witchcraft,  4,  81,  89,  134 
Wood,  52,  57,  97 
Wotan.    See  Odin 


Yarn,  55,  75,  104,  140,  165 
Year's  end,  10,  17-18,  84 

Yellow,  156 
Yggdrasil,  122 
Yorkshire,  97 
Yule,  3,  126 

ZSCHOKKB,  140 


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